San Diego Comic-Con has released a statement in response to the backlash after their announcement that they would hold an in-person convention over the 2021 Thanksgiving weekend. The coronavirus pandemic resulted in the cancellation of SDCC's 2020 in-person events. Organizers chose to move forward with a virtual event, Comic-Con @ Home, that ended up being considered a failure by many. Marvel, a staple of SDCC, skipped the event entirely as they figured out their theatrical and streaming plans, while DC Films held their own convention with DC FanDome in August.
At the beginning of March, SDCC announced they would be splitting the 2021 festivities into two events. One would be held online during the usual SDCC dates in July and the second would be an in-person event planned for November. When SDCC announced the in-person event would be held over the Thanksgiving weekend, many criticized the decision to schedule the convention that weekend.
Now, Comic-Con has responded to the backlash on their website, explaining why they chose the Thanksgiving weekend for their in-person dates. They cite the fact that, many times, conventions are held during holidays and Thanksgiving in particular, with fans spending the day of the holiday with families before heading out to the convention to spend it with their "families of choice." SDCC says that the Thanksgiving weekend was one of the only times that the event space would be available and able to accommodate the event in the fourth quarter of 2021.
The backlash to the announcement was unsurprising. Thanksgiving 2021 will be the first holiday that many will be able to spend with their loved ones since 2019 and sacrificing that to attend the convention puts many in a tough spot. Additionally, it could also lead to more unnecessary traveling at a time when that still poses a risk for some. It's hard to tell how things will be in November, especially with vaccines rolling out around the world, but inspiring more travel could be seen as irresponsible.
SDCC attracts over 150,000 attendees every year as its popularity has grown massively over the years. How big the November event will be remains unclear. So, too, does the willingness on the part of studios to participate. The release calendar remains in flux, with Disney delaying six more films just last week. How stable that will be in November remains to be seen and although things are looking up, it's hard to predict how big San Diego Comic-Con could even be if the November event goes forward.
Source: Comic-Con