Emerald City Comic-Con, PAX West officially canceled this year

Emerald City Comic Con officially canceled for 2020, rescheduled for Spring 2021

SEATTLE - Organizers with Emerald City Comic Con and PAX West announced Tuesday that both events are canceled this year. The main reason, according to organizer ReedPop, is because of concerns over COVID-19.

A statement on the ECCC event website reads in part: "Because of this, and after many discussions with the convention center, exhibitors, artists and fans, we have made the excruciating yet necessary decision to cancel Emerald City Comic Con 2020 in Seattle."

ECCC typically brings in close to 100,000 visitors each year. Originally, the event was scheduled for March, but with the outbreak just starting in the region at the time, organizers had pushed it back to August.

The decision to cancel outright, however, will have an economic impact in the region.

Michael Nazar, owner of Phoenix Comics, said he depends on the foot traffic the convention brings in each year to increase his revenue.

"I've been watching other conventions cancel. And to have a convention as large as Emerald City and then delay and then cancel didn't surprise me. I was a little sad," said Nazar.

According to organizers, tickets will be refunded by the end of the month.

"All tickets transferred from ECCC March 2020 to August 2020 will be automatically refunded by June 29, 2020; no action is needed on your part. We will have more information on 2021 tickets and their on-sale date in the Fall."

Until that time, ReedPop said the convention organizers will put on a digital event in August, "to support exhibitors and connect fans."

PAX West also canceled an in-person event this year, originally scheduled for this fall.

"The more we worked on a solution, the more it became clear that if we really wanted to welcome everybody home, we’d have to remove the physical barriers entirely, and simply take PAX Online," organizers said in their online statement.

The PAX West virtual convention will take place for nine straight days, September 12-20.

Emerald City Comic Con is hoping to reschedule an in-person event for March 4-7th, 2021.