Hey, James Gunn tried to warn us that Marvel wouldn't be at San Diego Comic-Con next month, and it looks like he wasn't just blowin' smoke. Deadline is confirming that Marvel will skip a big Hall H panel at Comic-Con, there first time doing so since 2011. Marvel's presentation is always the highlight of the Con, and typically ends the entire event for most people on Saturday night. Since I usually skip SDCC completely on Sunday, Marvel is how I cap off my trip.
You can usually count on them to do something extraordinary; whether it's Tom Hiddleston appearing as Loki, or the entire cast of The Avengers gathering on stage. I'll never forget when Edgar Wright came out and showed that initial Ant-Man test footage that blew us all away, or that remarkably impressive first footage from Guardians of the Galaxy. >sniffle< Those were the days. But this has been coming for awhile, I think. Marvel no longer has a need for SDCC. They're established; their movies are like printing money and why give away something for free? Besides, their simply isn't that much for them to reveal this year. Their entire upcoming slate has been announced already. The only thing they'd have to show us is Captain America: Civil War, which I would love but is hardly reason for a full-blown panel. It's possible they'll show some of the film at D23.
There are positives to this, though. My hope is that this keeps a few thousand people the f**k away from SDCC. Or, at least I hope it keeps them the f**k away from the Hall H line. I'd really like to be able to return to my hotel and sleep for a few hours rather than sleeping in line. This also gives Warner Bros. a chance to cut loose and own the show for themselves. They can bring Batman v Superman, Suicide Squad, and whatever else they got cooking over there. And who knows? Maybe this will clear a path for 20th Century Fox to really wow us with some X-Men: Apocalypse and Deadpool footage?
