San Diego Comic-Con

[Drunk Monk]

One of Comic-Con's most visible features is illegal

A yearly cat-and-mouse game on the San Diego streets

By Farley Elliott,SoCal Bureau ChiefJuly 24, 2025


A Comic-Con sign during 2025 Comic-Con International preview night on July 23, 2025, in San Diego, Calif.
Daniel Knighton/Getty Images
Tens of thousands of hardcore pop culture fans are descending on San Diego this week, part of the annual influx of comic book readers, TV fanatics and superhero hounds who never miss a Comic-Con. The 55-year-old culture convention has become a San Diego staple, growing from a comic book hangout to a global phenomenon that attracts A-list Hollywood talent who have been trained to tease the fawning crowds with exclusive details about the next big project.
That, of course, means that advertisers love Comic-Con, too. The brand deals and activations and building wraps that come with the annual multi-day event have become something of a staple themselves, immersing fans in a tourist-friendly city that, for one busy weekend, suddenly looks very different. 
There’s just one problem: Those giant, building-wrapping ads that fans love to gawk at are, apparently, illegal.
According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Comic-Con’s famous building wraps have been earning advertisers fines for years. In 2024, the city issued 27 administrative citations for illegal advertising, with penalties for each infraction running up to $1,000 per day. Last year’s total ended up at $22,500.
That appears to be a small price to pay for the chance at a giant reveal during one of the world’s biggest pop culture events. “These wallscapes have become synonymous with [Comic-Con],” Lori Brabant, founder of building wrap company KAP Media, told the Union-Tribune.


A sign displayed during 2025 Comic-Con International: San Diego preview night at San Diego Convention Center on July 23, 2025, in San Diego, Calif.
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
“I love it,” fan and San Diego local Justin Wu told the Los Angeles Daily News last year. “They keep getting bigger and bigger.”
The city of San Diego shared a statement on the billboards with local news channel KFMB-TV, saying: “The City’s Building and Land Use Enforcement Division (BLUE) has enforced Comic-Con signage using Administrative Citations (ACs) since 2019. Per the San Diego Municipal Code, the penalties are up to $1000 a day. BLUE will enforce unpermitted signage during this year’s Comic-Con, including building wraps.”
According to the Union-Tribune, this year’s building wraps include “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” an “Alien: Earth” ad on the Hilton San Diego Bayfront hotel and a “Dexter: Resurrection” advertisement on a 35-story high-rise. Comic-Con continues until Sunday, July 27.

I love the wraps. They are so impressive.

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The Sakamoto hottie sat down next to me and started chatting me up until one of my editors absconded with her. Jill. A lawyer who gave up private practice to pursue the AR promo with Netflix. Now I e lost track of her and am having a sad. 

Her name wasn't Jill. DM musta been high. Her name was Sofia. And she called DM her 'bestie'