Cosplayer Jessica Nigri was hired to portray the protagonist of Lollipop chainsaw at PAX East. She was also asked to leave the convention because her pink outfit with a “neckline” went all the way down to her crotch. She returned the next day wearing a cheerleader outfit with her Cosplay Wigs (which she had worn the day before the pink outfit without issue).
Nigri tweeted “Haha guys! I just had to tone down the costume!”
Robert Khoo, president of business development for Penny Arcade, verified that Nigri was asked to change, or leave, due to the numerous complaints expo staff received about her attire, or lack thereof.
Khoo said expo staff “notified the WB booth on Friday of our concerns regarding the costumes, and although there was some confusion initially about which outfit was appropriate…they understood the situation.”
Penny Arcade has a “no booth babe” policy at its expos because they do not want to be known for having models in skimpy cloths pushing products, which happens at other game show conventions. This policy was put to a community vote, which received a positive vote. If a company does decide to employ cosplayers, they are required to know something about the product. There is to be “no messaging that specifically calls out body parts,” while “cosplayed characters are allowed to wear revealing outfits, assuming it is true to the source game,” although there is no specific ban on “partial nudity.”
“Although the policies regarding appropriate attire are clearly laid out in our exhibitor rules, there are times when edge cases like Lollipop Chainsaw, which technically is allowed since it’s the main character in the game, pop up,” Khoo said “For scenarios like that, we need to make a judgment call, and a big factor for this one was looking at the number of complaints we had received.”
“Ultimately the costume policy is designed to keep the show family friendly, as we see a good number of parents being their young children to the show,” Khoo said. “No one, including WB, wants to upset their fans, so I’m perfectly fine standing behind the decision and policy.”
[Via Kotaku]
