Comic-Con International Goes Virtual For 2nd Year Due To Pandemic

SAN DIEGO, CA — Comic-Con International in San Diego has been canceled for the second consecutive year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Comic-Con was slated to return to the San Diego Convention Center July 22-25.

"It is the policy of the organization to continue to closely monitor information from local and national healthcare officials as it pertains to the COVID-19 pandemic. Never could we have imagined what the world experienced in 2020 and continues to experience today," event organizers said in a news release.

"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."

Last year was the first time the annual pop culture celebration had been canceled in its 50-year history, according to San Diego Comic Convention, the organization behind the event. It was replaced with a virtual event. This year's Comic-Con@Home will take place over three days.

"Unfortunately, the challenges of this past year and the multiple postponements of our two largest events have left us with limited financial resources, so this year the online experience will be reduced to a three-day event," organizers said.

The free online event is slated July 23-25.

The organization's WonderCon in Anaheim was also canceled. WonderCon@Home will also take place as a free online event March 26-27.

San Diego Comic Convention announced it is planning a smaller, in-person event in November in San Diego.

People who purchased badges for Comic-Con will have the option to request a refund or transfer their badges to Comic-Con 2022, according to the organization. In addition, the organization is working on an option for those who wish to transfer their badge to the three-day event in November.