Why San Diego Comic-Con Will Be So Different This Year
The biggest TV, film, book, and comic fan event of the year, San Diego Comic-Con, kicks off this Thursday, July 20, at the San Diego Convention Center. While the event is still on, the writers and actors strikes are going to make SDCC 2023 an entirely different experience for TV and film fans.
The WGA writers strike has been ongoing since May 2, 2023. On Thursday, July 13, the SAG-AFTRA actors union officially went on strike, which bars all of its members working under the current TV/Theatrical Contracts (not commercial) from doing any press for their shows and movies, which includes participating in panels at fan events like Comic-Con.
That means the Barbie and Oppenheimer press tours are done (any content from those interviews were obtained prior to the strike’s official start date — midnight on the morning of July 14), and shows with upcoming 2023 releases (and 2024, depending on how long the strike continues) will not have its casts available for any kind of promotional event (unless an actor crosses a picket line and offers their services anyway, which would result in them losing SAG membership).
The SAG strike rules even apply to influencers who are members of the union and would typically attend Comic-Con as cosplayers; the union released guidance for such workers after the strike went into effect (more on that below).
Here, we compile specific strike rules and how they impact SDCC 2023, including what press outlets like TV Insider are allowed to cover. Prepare yourselves for a much different convention than in years past.
SAG-AFTRA rules against promoting TV shows
The rules of the SAG-AFTRA strike only apply to a certain section of the union’s members — the ones working under the TV/Theatrical Contracts. There are broadcast workers such as news anchors who are members of SAG, but this strike does not pertain to their contracts/specific lines of work, and therefore the 2023 strike rules do not apply to them.
For those performers who are beholden to the strike rules, the SAG-AFTRA strike rules state they are barred from participating in the following work for struck studios and streamers:
- Principal on camera work, such as:
- Acting
- Singing
- Dancing
- Performing stunts
- Piloting on-camera aircraft
- Puppeteering
- Performance capture or motion capture work
- Principal off camera work, such as:
- ADR/Looping
- TV Trailers (promos) and Theatrical Trailers
- Voice Acting
- Singing
- Narration
- Stunt coordinating and related services
- Stand-in work
- Photo and/or body doubles
- Fittings, wardrobe tests, and makeup tests
- Rehearsals and camera tests
- Scanning
- Interviews and auditions (including via self-tape)
- Promotion of/publicity services for work under the TV/Theatrical Contracts, such as:
- Tours
- Personal appearances
- Interviews
- Conventions
- Fan expos
- Festivals
- For your consideration events
- Panels
- Premieres/screenings
- Award shows
- Junkets
- Podcast appearances
- Social media
- Studio showcases
- Negotiating and/or entering into and/or consenting to:
- An agreement to perform covered services in the future
- Any new agreement related to merchandising connected to a covered project
- The creation and use of digital replicas, including through the reuse of prior work
- Performing on a trailer for a struck production or other ancillary content connected to a struck production
Non-union members who work for struck studios and streamers during the strike will be barred from getting union membership in the future.
WGA rules against promoting TV shows
Like the actors strike, the writers strike bars WGA union members from promoting past and present work and writing for studios/streamers at all. As a result, studios massively scaled back their attendance plans for SDCC this year before the actors strike was authorized, resulting in canceled panels and appearances. Entertainment news outlets will also have a notable absence from the in-person event, as writers and actors are not allowed to participate in press interviews promoting any of their projects with studios and streamers.
Can journalists still cover SDCC?
Yes. SAG-AFTRA is not calling for a media and consumer boycott as part of this strike, which means fans can pay to see movies in theaters without guilt and entertainment journalists can continue to do their jobs reporting on shows and films. TV/film criticism is also still allowed, as it and industry news reporting are independent lines of work (a.k.a. not paid for by studios/streamers). An email from SAG-AFTRA to an inquiring entertainment journalist confirmed journalists need not worry about writing about shows during the strike.
“We are not telling journalist they cannot do their jobs,” SAG’s email response said. “You will not [be] barred membership for doing so.”
The WGA is also not calling for a media and consumer boycott, so the above similarly applies to journalists who hope to be granted membership to the WGA in the future. This means that journalists in the WGA and journalists who may hope to one day be part of the WGA are still allowed to report TV/film news and write criticism of released works.
Is cosplaying allowed at SDCC 2023?
SAG-AFTRA is asking influencers in the union who cosplay not to cosplay as characters from struck studios and streamers at SDCC, as it would be promotion of a TV show/movie, whether paid or not.
“We are asking folks not to do cosplay if it would promote struck productions,” SAG said in an email to an influencer. “Yes, you can promote comics, books, and games, as this is not struck work. That being said, performers are being asked to refrain from promoting struck work, including past productions that would have been struck if produced today.”
Like actors, non-union influencers who wish to one day become a member should refrain from participating in paid promotion with studios and streamers. Check out more SAG strike rules for influencers here.
Canceled SDCC 2023 panels
Marvel, Netflix, Disney, HBO, Sony, and Universal are all skipping SDCC 2023. Marvel was the first to announce it would skip its Hall H presentation, sharing the decision with fans in late June.
Panels and previews for Jury Duty, The Wheel of Time Season 2, Cruel Summer Season 2, The Boys spinoff Gen V, Twisted Metal, Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar, Heels Season 2, Abbott Elementary, Orphan Black: Echoes, That ’70s Show 25th Anniversary, Dune: Part Two, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the Detective Pikachu sequel, and Interview With the Vampire Season 2 have all been canceled.
What’s still happening at SDCC 2023
While the stars and creators of your favorite shows and movies will not be in attendance at SDCC this year, there will still be announcements for these shows in the form of trailers and first-look footage. AMC announced Monday, July 17 that there will be an Anne Rice Immortal Universe activation for fans, as well as first looks at various Walking Dead shows, such as a sneak peek of the first half of the first episode of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, which premieres this September.
Check out TV Insider’s list of SDCC 2023 events for an up-to-date schedule of the weekend’s happenings.
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