Looks like Marvel’s SDCC presence will be much diminished this year, as there will be no Hall H panel showing off their movie line-up.
For the last few years, Marvel’s big Hall H panels have been huge hits at San Diego Comic-Con.
In 2010, Joss Whedon brought out The Avengers cast for the first time, and in 2012, we got the title of the much-anticipated sequel Age of Ultron.
But this year, just as Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn cautioned, there will be no big Hall H panel for Marvel.
Related: Captain America: Civil War writers announced for Avengers: Infinity War
Although Marvel doesn’t host a Hall H panel every year, it’s surprising that they aren’t taking advantage of the Comic-Con scene this summer, as we can think of a number of big announcement they might want to make.
For one, Marvel is getting very close to casting their new Spider-Man, and the title of his first solo movie still needs to be confirmed.
Then there’s Captain Marvel and Black Panther, which aren’t set to debut until 2018 and 2019 respectively, but for which directors and/or lead actors surely need to be announced soon.
The Guardians of the Galaxy 2 script has recently been completed, and we’re still waiting for the title, since James Gunn kept it purposefully hidden.
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So what gives, Marvel?
Well, Captain America: Civil War production is currently underway in Atlanta, and since almost every single Marvel actor is set to appear in the film, the studio’s absence is probably at least partly due to scheduling.
The Russo brothers aren’t likely to have any concrete footage to show yet, and we doubt that there are any big casting announcements that haven’t yet been made.
It’s also likely that Marvel is holding out for the D23 Expo, which is of course Disney’s own showcase event.
We bet everyone going to Comic-Con is feeling pretty bad about their misfortune… but then they’ll remember that they actually get to go to Comic-Con, and everything is actually still pretty great.
And it’s not like Marvel won’t have a presence at all — just no Hall H panel! Stay tuned to learn more about this year’s Comic-Con line-up, and what events Hypable.com will be covering.