Marvel Sitting Out The 2023 San Diego Comic-Con
The superheroes are sitting this one out. The Wrap exclusively reports that Marvel Studios will not have a presentation at Hall H at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. The world’s biggest comic convention, the San Diego Comic-Con has expanded from its comic-focused origins over the past few decades to become a showcase for Hollywood to advertise upcoming movies and TV shows. Marvel Studios has been one of the biggest and most anticipated presentations since it began showing up at Hall H, the convention’s centerpiece. Last year, for example, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige announced the upcoming MCU film slate and phase breakdown. The Wrap gives the writers’ strike as the main reason, which caused delays in most of Marvel’s productions; there’s also the impending actors’ strike, which, if it happens, may keep the Marvel stars (whichever ones who fit the bill are left, at any rate) from appearing. Universal and HBO may also skip Comic-Con, according to The Wrap. Marvel will “have a presence on the convention floor,” however.
Marvel’s absence from this year’s Comic-Con makes sense. Not only are these productions being delayed, and not only is an actors’ strike looming, but they’ve recently reshuffled their release schedule, which, whatever the reason (and I think it’s more than just the writers’ strike), is embarrassing. That it happened less than a year after they announced their plan for Phases 5 and 6 would make it even more humiliating. It also suggests, at least to me, that their plans are in flux right now; I think they may scrap a few of these delayed projects and heavily change some of the ones they’re keeping. And what they’ve got at the moment is not exactly exciting; nobody is on the edge of their seat for Echo, The Marvels, or Agatha: Coven of Chaos (which I still can’t believe is a thing that is happening), and based on how they’re handling Echo, Marvel and Disney are aware of this. They have nothing to show of Daredevil: Born Again, probably nothing cool yet from Deadpool 3 or Captain America: Brave New World, and Fantastic Four and the next Avengers movies are a long way off.
There’s one other problem, too: Marvel is no fun anymore. Look at this from 2013’s Comic-Con:
Can you imagine being in that room? You can feel the energy just watching it on YouTube. Can you see them doing anything like this now? What would it be: She-Hulk bemoaning the male gaze or Star-Spangled Falcon lecturing the audience on their privilege? They don’t have anyone as charismatic as Tom Hiddleston or as likable as Loki anymore, with the exceptions of Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and now, thanks to Disney’s Fox acquisition, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine and Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool. But Thor isn’t in any upcoming movies (and has been turned into a parody of himself), and there likely isn’t anything to show from Deadpool 3. So Marvel missing a Comic-Con isn’t the disappointment it once was.
