Harley Quinn cosplayers pose at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019.
Tania González/CNET
San Diego Comic-Con, the gigantic four-day pop culture convention scheduled for July 23-26, has been canceled due to the coronavirus crisis.
“Recognizing that countless attendees save and plan for its conventions each year, and how many exhibitors and stakeholders rely upon its events for a major portion of their livelihood, [officials] had hoped to delay this decision in anticipation that COVID-19 concerns might lessen by summer,” SDCC said in a statement posted to its website. “Continuous monitoring of health advisories and recent statements by the governor of California have made it clear that it would not be safe to move forward with plans for this year.”
The statement mentioned “deep regret” at the decision and mentioned that the event will return in 2021, from July 22-25. We’ve reached out to SDCC for additional comment.
Last month, Comic-Con organizers postponed a smaller convention, WonderCon Anaheim, which was scheduled for April 10-12, and also postponed events planned for its Comic-Con Museum.
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Many similar events had to make the cancelation or postponement call earlier as scheduled dates approached. Seattle’s Emerald City Comic-Con, which had been scheduled for March 12-15, was postponed less than a week before its starting date, but organizers are hoping to reschedule for summer. The Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival was pushed back to October, and the South By Southwest festival is off for this year.
Here’s a running list of all the major sports, cultural and tech events canceled so far.
