San Diego Comic Con Comments on Possible Cancellation
San Diego Comic-Con has released a new statement about this year's event. No decision has been [...]
San Diego Comic-Con has released a new statement about this year's event. No decision has been made, and they continue to monitor the situation. "To our amazing Comic-Con and WonderCon fans: We understand how difficult the current climate has been for all of us and appreciate your continued support through these trying times," the SDCC Twitter account tweeted on Wednesday. "No one is as hopeful as we are that we will be able to celebrate #SDCC2020 together come July. As we continue to monitor the situation with local authorities, we will post updates on our social channels! Until then, remember: 'A hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.' — Christopher Reeve"
The San Diego Convention Center is currently set to be used as a homeless shelter during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The convention is the home of the annual Comic-Con, the biggest comics and pop culture convention in the United States. Despite the venue being converted for emergency use, the event's organizers haven't decided to cancel or delay this year's event, which typically sees 135,000 people descend on downtown San Diego in July. "We applaud the actions of the city as they offer additional support to some of our community's most vulnerable in these unprecedented times," Comic-Con said in a statement. "And while we continue to explore WonderCon dates, we are diligently working on Comic-Con. Currently, our hope is that the event will occur July 23-26, 2020, as scheduled."
WonderCon is San Diego Comic-Con's smaller, Anaheim-based sister show. This year's WonderCon was scheduled to take place in April but has been delayed. In a statement released at the time, the organizers stated, "To protect public health and slow the rate of transmission of COVID-19, the California Department of Public Health announced a recommendation that gatherings and events of more than 250 people should either be postponed or canceled. Comic-Con (organizer of WonderCon) will abide by this recommendation. Therefore WonderCon Anaheim, scheduled for April 10-12, 2020 in Anaheim, California, will be postponed until a later date. We will begin processing refunds in the coming days."
As we continue to monitor the situation with local authorities, we will post updates on our social channels! Until then, remember: “A hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” — Christopher Reeve 2/2
— San Diego Comic-Con (@Comic_Con) April 1, 2020
At that time, the organizers stated they were still mulling their options in regards to San Diego Comic-Con 2020. "Comic-Con is working with local officials as it pertains to the COVID-19 situation and continues to monitor developments closely."
A final decision about San Diego Comic-Con may not arrive until June. If Comic-Con is delayed, it would be the latest in a series of such postponements for pop culture events. In addition to WonderCon, Emerald City Comic Con was also forced to delay this year's event.