The Latest Celebrity to Get the Hologram Treatment? Stan Lee.

As Bob Dylan memorably sang in the 1980s, death is not the end. To be fair, Dylan was likely speaking in a more philosophical register there; however, his words have become oddly prescient for far more mundane reasons in the decades that followed. In other words: death is not the end…at least, not if there’s enough data to create a viable hologram.

The likes of Whitney Houston and Buddy Holly have had holographic avatars take to the stage for posthumous “performances.” The lastest celebrity to make a comeback in holographic form comes from a somewhat different corner of the pop culture universe: comic book pioneer Stan Lee.

As Aaron Couch writes at The Hollywood Reporter, a hologram of Lee will appear at next weekend’s L.A. Comic Con. Ticket holders — yes, you’ll need to buy a ticket to interact with the hologram — will be able to do things like take a selfie with the hologram and ask it questions. According to a post on Instagram, the hologram will be doing both group and individual Q & A sessions with ticketholders. So if you’ve ever wanted to ask a hologram about deep cuts from the Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating the DC Universe project — this might be your opportunity to do exactly that.

“[W]ith decades of footage capturing his thoughts on so many subjects, we can build a voice that stays true, not always word for word, but always faithful in spirit, context, and intent,” Bob Sabouni, Kartoon Studios’ Head of Stan Lee Legacy Programs, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Hologram Harry Caray Is a Reminder That the Tech Is Creepy and Unnecessary

The legendary broadcaster got the “Weekend at Bernie’s” treatment during Thursday’s Field of Dreams game

Lee spent years as a kind of unofficial spokesperson for superhero comics, and made cameos across the Marvel Cinematic Universe until his death. As is the case with most people, his life was more complicated than his public persona let on — the biography True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee is both highly recommended and very sobering.

Meet your guide

Tobias Carroll

Tobias Carroll lives and writes in New York City, and has been covering a wide variety of subjects — including (but not limited to) books, soccer and drinks — for many years. His writing has been published by the likes of the Los Angeles Times, Pitchfork, Literary Hub, Vulture, Punch, the New York Times and Men’s Journal. At InsideHook, he has…