Everything is bigger at San Diego Comic-Con this year. Except Hollywood.

A year after a Hollywood onslaught at Comic-Con International more than one big studio has decided to take a break In a new era of Hollywood belt-tightening several experts say the expense of Comic-Con might not be worth it especially as production of new projects has slowed The big superhero film producers DC Studios and Marvel Studios have both reduced their output emphasizing quality over quantity after a limited box-office duds so they also don t have as much to show off There are still big projects taking over Comic-Con s biggest space the -seat Hall H a new Predator movie several Star Trek and The Walking Dead shows DC Studios Peacemaker show and the new Tron movie Hollywood stars will also be there like actor Ryan Gosling and Star Wars creator George Lucas for his first-ever appearance at the event Besides Hollywood everything else is bigger Advertising efforts are through the roof with San Diego Trolley wraps selling out a near record number of building wraps splashed all over the Gaslamp Quarter and the studios are spending thousands if not more on free activations throughout downtown Comic-Con is cyclical revealed Heidi MacDonald editor of the comic book news website The Beat about a slower year I don t think it has anything to do with Comic-Con it s just a reflection of the mindset of Hollywood itself She has been a moderator at big panels and seen firsthand how much money and effort goes into it likely something on the minds of studio executives this year MacDonald noted expenses include airfare for actors drivers makeup and hair audio visual equipment hotel stays and in what my be surprising to attendees hours of rehearsal before the panels Hollywood production was down in the first quarter compared with last year declared the industry-run nonprofit FilmLA Global production is in decline not just in California but the situation prompted Gov Gavin Newsom to sign a million tax credit in July for TV and films made in the Golden State Even if Encounter of Thrones and The Avengers don t show up it doesn t change the fact that the event sold out instantly The latest estimates say the four-day event has a million impact on the region For context that s more than the San Diego Chargers brought to the region million according to a city analysis in a single year Over the past decade star power at Comic-Con has ebbed and flowed and in hindsight sometimes its success or failure might have been a bit overblown One publication declared the event in shambles in after studios pulled out during writer and actor strikes One year later Marvel Studios and others came roaring back into Hall H Still it s hard not to admit things are a bit slower in comparison to banner years Both Marvel and Warner Bros producers of DC films at the time took over Hall H on the same day in Marvel sent fandom into a frenzy with a full slate of films and the biggest names came on stage such as Benedict Cumberbatch Warner Bros got even more press debuting the full cast of the Justice League movie including Ben Affleck Jason Momoa and Gal Gadot Marvel Studios not being there in a big way is like Coca-Cola deciding not to advertise during the Super Bowl reported Carl Winston founding director of the Payne School of Hospitality Tourism Management at San Diego State University While it s true Marvel s output has slowed it is still the biggest thing in comic book movies and TV It has a major film The Fantastic First Moves coming out during Comic-Con weekend an animated Black Panther show coming out in August the Marvel Zombies show in October and Wonder Man show in December It also has new Avengers and Spider-Man films opening next year It should be noted Marvel is owned by Disney which is a big presence at the event with other franchises The Hollywood Reporter citing anonymous sources disclosed that the unofficial ethos of Marvel Studios is go big or stay home and the thinking this year was it didn t have enough to justify a Hall H appearance Throughout its more than -year history it has skipped Comic-Con a handful of times only to come back with a huge splash the next year This could be an opportunity for Marvel s traditional rival DC which just rebooted its film universe with Superman this month MacDonald reported DC Studios co-chief James Gunn who wrote and directed Superman will be at the convention to promote the second season of the new universe s Peacemaker show Experts expect it to be a bit of a de facto DC Studios panel and a preeminence lap for Gunn after the box-office success of Superman MacDonald mentioned she was shocked there wasn t a dedicated DC Studios panel after all the Superman buzz Yet she disclosed Peacemaker might serve as a sort of under-the-radar panel for the full studio and there could be several surprises David Glanzer chief communications and strategy officer for Comic-Con declared they weren t sweating a more subdued showing from movie studios Do I think this is a trend I don t think so and certainly hope not he explained Big names at San Diego Comic-Con International this year include actor Ryan Gosling DC Studios co-chief James Gunn and Star Wars creator George Lucas AP Photo Ebrahim Noroozi Photo by Scott A Garfitt Invision AP Comic-Con doesn t pay studios to show up so it s not like they are feeling any sort of financial strain The nonprofit s financial stability is stronger after a two rough years during the pandemic when it went online-only It had million in net assets at the end of commented its most-recent tax returns up from million the previous year Glanzer announced big studio panels get the greater part attention from entertainment publications but that is very different from the actual convention attendee experience with thousands of hours of initiatives In general Comic-Con has never been bigger even if HBO Apple TV and others didn t show up this year Whatever studios decide for inside the convention it doesn t change that the outside of Comic-Con is bigger than ever To promote the new Alien show Disney-owned FX will be building the wreckage of a spaceship in front of the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hulu also owned by Disney will build the world from King of the Hill in the Bayfront parking lot and Peacock is constructing a bumper car ride for its show Twisted Metal in the parking lot next to San Diego Children s Park Winston explained the uniqueness of Comic-Con is what keeps advertisers and the group so involved in upping the scale He announced it wasn t necessarily certain San Diego planner s master stroke just that the event spilling out into downtown out of necessity because it outgrew the convention center is one of the bulk authentic experiences for a fan We re all tired of Denny s and want to go to that local coffee shop with a cool vibe he commented I think the people who visit Comic-Con crave authenticity You can t get this in a big-box Las Vegas hotel San Diegans inadvertently or on purpose created this really cool authentic experience What to expect Otman Shouli of Portland dressed as Akaza from the Demon Slayer series at Comic-Con in The anime franchise will take over Hall H for the first time this year K C Alfred The San Diego Union-Tribune Star Wars creator George Lucas will take the Comic-Con stage for the first time on July His panel will likely get certain of the the greater part media attention but fans might want to be cautious about what to expect Lucas has mentioned very little about his opinion on new Star Wars shows and movies since selling Lucasfilm to Disney for billion in No doubt the fan dream would be for Lucas to spend hours on stage discussing his thoughts on each Disney project answer burning questions about force-related things and explain his plots for unmade films Yet that isn t what s on the menu Lucas one-hour panel will be focused on his new museum in Los Angeles the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art He will be joined by director Guillermo del Toro and singer Queen Latifah so it likely won t leave much time for him to discuss Star Wars if at all Other big panels over the weekend will be South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone on July the new Predator Badlands movie with star Elle Fanning as well as the new Tron movie on July and Project Hail Mary on July a film adaptation of a hit sci-fi book starring Ryan Gosling who will be in attendance Creators from Asia will also be giving stateside studios a run for their money this year Anime Japanese film and television animation has dependably had a big presence at Comic-Con but this year it sure seems more prevalent Wildly popular anime Demon Slayer will be on hand with voice actors and creators to discuss its upcoming feature film Infinity Castle It s the first time an anime franchise will take over Hall H in the prime Saturday evening slot a time typical reserved for heavyweights such as Marvel Studios or HBO Glanzer disclosed there was no internal discussion where Comic-Con agents decided that anime is really popular so they better give Demon Slayer a Saturday slot He noted so multiple of the decisions about where to put a property come down to when that studio can show up and if they think it can fill a room Still at least someone at Comic-Con must have thought Demon Slayer was a big enough deal that it could fill the -seat Hall H Anyone who thinks Demon Slayer can t fill Hall H is going to be very surprised MacDonald noted She explained her publication attended the Anime Expo in Los Angeles in early July and was shocked by its size Organizers revealed it broke a record with attendees more than Comic-Con s anticipated attendees People clearly put a value on what Comic-Con is offering this year even if entertainment magazines might be less impressed by the lack of movie stars Comic-Con attendees aren t supposed to sell badges especially because the buyer s name is clearly visible on badges but that hasn t stopped them from showing up on ticket websites On Thursday on Stubhub single-day tickets for Saturday July Comic-Con s biggest day were going from to That s a big hike from the a day ticket cost for most of attendees Getting a hotel or vacation rental at this point would be expensive and challenging The cheapest downtown hotel room that was still available as of Thursday was at the San Diego Downtown Lodge on Tenth Avenue across from San Diego City College for a night The closest available hotel to the Convention Center was the Hard Rock Hotel with one room left for a night Comic-Con means a lot of work for hotel workers restaurant staffs and businesses of all shapes in the Gaslamp Quarter However Daniel Kuperschmid CEO of the San Diego Tourism Authority disclosed everyone is ready for next week This is our Super Bowl he declared By the numbers The number of San Diego Comic-Con attendees million Economic impact for San Diego in million Estimated taxes for San Diego from hotel and tax revenues The number of trolley cars wrapped with Comic-Con advertisements years Comic-Con is guaranteed to remain in San Diego through Estimated number of downtown buildings wrapped for Comic-Con The daily ticket cost for Thursday to Saturday for seniors military and years old to years old Sources San Diego Comic-Con city of San Diego Metropolitan Transit System KAP Media