Marvel Studios to skip Comic-Con’s famous Hall H, and it might not be the only one

It might be an atypically quiet summer in San Diego this year, or at least in one specific room in one specific building, with Marvel Studios reportedly not planning to put on a big presentation for San Diego Comic-Con’s famous Hall H this year. That comes from The Wrap, which says Marvel will still have “a presence on the convention floor” (perhaps in an attempt to remind everyone that Marvel was once a comic book company), but it will not be bringing on flashy previews for Thunderbolts or Daredevil: Born Again or The Marvels.

The reasons for that should be fairly obvious, but the main one is that the WGA strike is still going on and (assuming the AMPTP doesn’t have a Grinch-like change of heart) it will probably still be going on in July when Comic-Con happens. Daredevil: Born Again has already been put on hold until the strike ends, so promoting it with a big presentation wouldn’t exactly win Marvel or Disney any goodwill with the various Hollywood unions.

Speaking of the various Hollywood unions, SAG-AFTRA might also be on strike by July, which would most likely prevent members from doing any promotional for their shows and movies—ergo, they wouldn’t be able to go onstage to talk about how excited they are to be in Thunderbolts or field audience questions about the Red Hulk, which would defeat the purpose of having a big Comic-Con Hall H presentation.

Of course, none of these issues apply just to Disney and Marvel, and The Wrap says that Universal and HBO might be planning on skipping this year’s Comic-Con as well. That means the world might be a little boring this year, with a disappointing lack of big movie news over the summer, but just remember that strikes are supposed to be disruptive—that’s how you know it’s working—and that the studios are the ones being difficult by refusing to give the writers (and maybe the actors!) a good contract.