Following a showing of the typical outrage, which has followed in the wake of nearly every public appearance announcement made by voice actor Vic Mignogna since he was first let go from Funimation under allegedly questionable circumstances, the Los Angeles Comic Con disinvited the former JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 4 – Diamond is Unbreakable voice actor from the recently-held 2021 edition of their event.
The campaign against Mignogna’s appearance at the LA Comic Con, which took place this past weekend from December 3rd to December 5th, was first sparked on December 2nd by Amy Imhoff, whose public website until recently hosted a resume listing her main claim to authority within the community as a lengthy career helping host and moderate various, smaller fan conventions.
This isn’t the first time Imhoff has targeted a convention that Mignogna was scheduled to attend.
Back in March, Imhoff went after Creation Entertainment’s Star Trek convention. She wrote on Twitter, “Please take a minute to read this short thread of my thoughts regarding Creation Entertainment’s announcement of Vic Mignogna as a guest for their August 2021 Las Vegas event.”
She added, “Tagging the good folks at Star Trek because I know they stand for integrity & support victims of sexual harassment.”
Imhoff then proceeded to share a statement that reads, “As yesterday was International Women’s Day, I didn’t want to mar it with talk of a disgusting sexual predator being announced as a guest at Creation’s 55-Year Mission convention in August (note that it is no longer endorsed by CBS as an official event). Today, however, is a new day.”
She continued, “I have been a visible face at STLV for the past 10 years, doing panels for the convention since 2013, particularly ones that focus on women’s representation in Star Trek. I wouldbe remiss if I did not publicly call out Vic Mignogna’s addition to the guest list as something that needs to be addressed and dealt with immediately.”
Imhoff then accused Mignogna of being a sexual predator, an accusation Mignogna has repeatedly denied, “Vic Mignogna is a known sexual predator and he lost his ridiculous 2019 lawsuit against the women who spoke up about his pattern of sexual misconduct that spans decades. His behavior is a matter of public record, and you can read all the evidence online (Links in following tweet).”
In a follow-up tweet, Imhoff wrote, “Second & final page of my thoughts on this important issue. All of the court documentation, including statements of victims, are gathered here at this reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/Animedubs/comments/c8fhuy/vic_mignogna_lawsuit_update_thread/”
She then shared another image of her statement, which says, “Vic has been dropped by Funimation and several conventions that are concerned for the safety of their attendees. I am personally concerned for the safety of the attendees should Vic not only attend, but received the access that comes with being a guest.”
“Several of my close friends have been creeped on and harassed by Vic. I stand in solidarity with them and I have already contacted the Creation team to express my feelings on the matter and request that they remove him from the guest list,” she wrote.
“Vic’s attendance does not have a place at an event that strives to celebrate a 55-year franchise that embodies ideas of integrity, inclusion, and feminist thought,” Imhoff asserted. She then encouraged her followers to contact Creation.
Mignogna’s lawsuit against Funimation, Monica Rial, Ron Toye, and Jamie Marchi for defamation and tortious interference is currently in the appeals process in the Second Judicial District Fort Worth, Texas.
A motion to dismiss the appeal was denied by the court back in December 2019.
Now, taking to Twitter after discovering the former voice of such characters as Dragon Ball’s Broly and One Piece’s Sabo had been invited to the convention, Imhoff declared, “I see that @comicconla now has known sexual predator Vic Mignogna on their guest list – this is unacceptable.”
“For the safety of your female guests, I urge you to remove him and I call upon my #StarTrek family to tweet & email in support of his removal from the event. #LAComicCon” added Imhoff,
In a subsequent tweet, Imhoff wrote, “Just to add to the primary thread – he is appearing at a vendor’s table to sign – Ace’s Anime & Collectibles. If you do not support his attendance, you can find them on Instagram and voice your concerns.”
She then proceeded to link to the retailer’s Instagram page.
The official LA Comic Con Twitter account responded to Imhoff, strangely by way of replying to multiple other users who had commented on her initial tweet, and assured her that they had “looked into this.”
“He wasn’t one of our guests,” the account explained, before, without providing any details, announcing that Mignogna was “no longer attending the show.”
In light of his disinvitation from the event, Mignogna shared a video to his personal Twitter account on December 4th in which he asked those of his fans planning to attend the convention to visit the booth of the independent retailer who planned to host him, SoCal-based anime retailer Ace’s Anime.
“They purchased a bunch of products from shows that I’ve been a part of in anticipation of me being there to sign at their booth this weekend, and I feel so bad that they did that I wanna do something to help them and support them,” said Mignogna. “So if you get anything from them and then come see me at an event in the future, I would be more than happy – honored – to sign it for free.”
“Tell them Vic sent you and go show some love and support to Ace’s Anime and Collectibles,” he concluded.
— Vic Mignogna (@vicmignogna) December 4, 2021
What do you make of Mignogna being disinvited from the recent LA Comic Con? Let us know your thoughts on social media or in the comments down below.