Was MarvelStudios the canary in the coal mine? With labor issues impacting SDCC2023, the studios need to look to their pandemic plans. Aside for the obvious and actually making a deal, of course. OPINION / SDCC WGA AMPTP DGA SAGAFTRA ComicCon
, but they would have a presence on the convention floor. And it sounds like The Mouse's"House of Spandex" might just be the canary on the coal mind, with rumblings that others are also considering scaling back.
But this time, it has to do with something a bit more self-inflicted than a global pandemic. With the ongoing WGA/AMPTP writers' strike not looking like it's going to end soon, coupled with the possibility of a SAG-AFTRA strike if a deal with the AMPTP can't be reached by the end of the month, there's no way of knowing how things might look between now and SDCC .
So what can the studios do to keep SDCC from becoming a shadow of its formal self once again, for reasons that were actually within our control? Well, the obvious answer is for the studios to step up and do right by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA and give them a new deal that respects what they bring to the game. But let's say that doesn't happen. Well, then the studios need to start tearing pages out of their COVID virtual event playbooks because that's their best second option.
So there you have it – you're welcome, studios. Of course, you can pay me back by striking a deal this week with everyone so that we can forget that any of this ever happened.