Comic-Con Cancels For Second Straight Year, Plans Smaller Show For November

The San Diego Comic Convention, better known as Comic-Con, has canceled its annual show for the second consecutive year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but raised the possibility of a smaller show in November.

What Happened: In a message on its website, Comic-Con stated both the spring show, WonderCon in Anaheim, California, and the main event slated for San Diego in July will not be produced as in-person events. Instead, the Anaheim show will occur as a free online experience March 26 and 27 and the main Comic-Con will be free online from July 23 to 25.

“While we are buoyed by the rollout of the vaccine and the growing number of individuals being inoculated, it appears that July will still be too early to safely hold an in-person event of the magnitude of Comic-Con,” event organizers said in a statement, adding the “multiple postponements of our two largest events have left us with limited financial resources.”

They added that a smaller in-person event could take place in San Diego in November, although details regarding attendance capacity and admission fees are still being worked out.

Why It Matters: Comic-Con began in 1970 as the Golden State Comic Book Convention. It has evolved over the years beyond its comic book roots to also featuring previews of Hollywood films, television programs, video games and toys. Among the exhibitors at the last show held in 2019 were Hasbro, Inc. HAS; Disney Publishing Worldwide, owned by Walt Disney Co DIS and CBS Interactive, part of ViacomCBS Inc VIAC.

Comic-Con has also become a major event in the cosplay subculture, with many attendees dressing up as their favorite comic book-inspired or science-fiction characters.

Comic-Con is a major revenue source for the San Diego economy. When the 2020 event was canceled because of the pandemic, the San Diego Convention Center said the local economy faced a loss of $166 million, reported KUSI News.

(Photo: A cosplay battalion at Comic-Con. Photo by Nathan Rupert / Creative Commons.)