Born on May 23, 1986, in Oakland, California, Ryan Kyle Coogler was the son of Ira and Jocelyn Coogler as he would grow up with two younger brothers in Noah and Keenan. His family would also include an uncle in Clarence Thomas who had been a former secretary treasurer for International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Coogler lived in Oakland until the age of 8 when his family moved to Richmond, California to avoid the violence and chaos in Oakland though Coogler would have a love for the city as it would be a place of great importance for him in his life. While he would excel in athletics and attend Saint Mary’s College High School in Berkeley where he would also excel in academics. It was in creative writing where Coogler would find a love for storytelling as his teachers found promise in his writing as they encourage him to create screenplays due to his love for films.
Attending Saint Mary’s College of California in Moraga, California where he would play wide receiver as he would befriend future football star Marshawn Lynch where they would often play against each other. The college would end their football program in 2004 as he transferred to Sacramento State on a football scholarship where he would succeed in the sport. It was in his academics where he would gain a bachelor’s degree in finance while also taking many film classes at the school where he would be accepted through the USC School of Cinematic Arts for a three-year master’s program after he had graduated from Sacramento State.
Early short films/Locks
At USC, Coogler would learn the craft of filmmaking where he would spend three years making short films. At the school, he would meet a young Swedish musician in Ludwig Goransson who was studying music scoring for film and television. Coogler and Goransson would strike up a friendship with Goransson, becoming a collaborator for all of Coogler’s works. While Coogler would also work for other students, he would make the first of three short films he did in USC in Locks. The film revolves around a young man walking into the streets of Oakland where he contemplates his identity. Especially through his dreadlocks where he watches several African-Americans either getting arrested or just hanging out as there was not a lot of dialogue in the film where it was mostly silent. Since it would be shot on location in Oakland, the city would be a prominent character for the films Coogler would create as he presented the short in 2009 where it screened at the Tribeca Film Festival where it won the Dana & Albert Broccoli Award for Filmmaking Excellence.
Fruitvale Station
With music composer Ludwig Goransson and editors Michael P. Shawver and Claudia Castello on board for the production, Coogler would gain another key collaborator in cinematographer Rachel Morrison who was starting to emerge as a revered cinematographer in American independent cinema. Another figure who would also become a recurring collaborator for Coogler is Hannah Beachler who was new to the industry as Coogler chose her to become the film’s production designer despite her lack of experience. While the project was in development, actress Octavia Spencer who had just won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for the 2011 film The Help signed on for the role of Grant’s mother that gave the film additional funding with Spencer also gaining an executive producer credit. With the help of casting director Nina Henniger, Coogler would get Kevin Durand and Chad Michael Murray as the two police officers who shot Grant as well as Melonie Diaz as Grant’s girlfriend Sophina. Coogler also had Grant’s mother play a small role as a schoolteacher to the girl playing her real-life granddaughter.
For the role of Oscar Grant III, Coogler wrote the part with one actor in mind in Michael B. Jordan who in 2011 was playing the role of quarterback Vance Howard in the TV show version of Friday Night Lights as the show had just ended. Jordan agreed to play the role of Grant marking the beginning of a fruitful actor-director collaboration between Jordan and Coogler. Production began in July of 2012 on a 20-day shoot in Oakland including the actual locations of where Grant was killed. Much of the shooting on those locations would happen at night with the permission from BART to get a realistic presentation about what happened that night. Coogler would also infuse flashbacks to play into Grant’s life and his own faults as a young man that include scenes at San Quentin State Prison where Coogler shot on the actual prison to play into Grant’s troubled past. While Coogler admit having reservations about using the footage that captured Grant’s death, he eventually gave in as he posted that, and footage posted a year later after Grant’s death for a memorial service on the man.
The film premiered on January 19, 2013, at that year’s Sundance Film Festival under the name Fruitvale where it would win the festival’s Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in its U.S. Dramatic section leading a bidding war for the film’s release where the Weinstein Company won the rights to release the film by spending $2 million for its rights although its budget was $900,000. Following a screening months later at the Cannes Film Festival where it played at the Un Certain Regard section and won a prize at the festival. The film would get a limited theatrical release in the U.S. on July 12, 2013, where it was well received from critics while grossing more than $17 million worldwide with $16 million in the U.S. The film would also be ranked among the year’s 10 best films of that year as well as garner many accolades including Best First Film from the New York Film Critics Circle and 4 awards from the National Board of Review including Best Directorial Debut for Coogler, Breakthrough Actor for Jordan, Best Supporting Actress to Spencer, and named as one of the 10 best films of the year.
Creed
In the spring of 2014, it was announced that Coogler and Stallone were officially involved in the film as pre-production continued with Coogler gathering several of his collaborators for the project in editors Michael P. Shawver and Claudia Castello, production designer Hannah Beachler, and composer Ludwig Goransson while gaining a new collaborator in Benjamin A. Burtt in doing the sound editing. With the help of casting directors Francine Maisler and Kathy Driscoll, real-life boxers Tony Bellew and Andre Ward were cast with the former playing the role of Adonis’ main opponent in “Pretty” Ricky Conlan. The casting would include Graham McTavish as Conlan’s manager, Tessa Thompson in the role of Adonis’ love interest Bianca, and Wood Harris as Tony “Duke” Evers’ son Tony Jr. For the role of Apollo’s widow Mary Anne Creed, Phylicia Rashad would be cast replacing Sylvia Meals who had died in 2011.
Production began in January 2015 with much of its production shot on location in Philadelphia with some of the film shot on location in Oakland. Coogler’s regular cinematographer Rachel Morrison would be unavailable for production due to scheduling conflicts as Coogler would receive the services of the renowned cinematographer Maryse Alberti. Shooting would have Coogler going out of the U.S. for the first time by shooting a scene at Goodison Park for a fight scene involving the Conlan character as it was also the place for the Everton Football Club in which Bellew and Stallone are supporters of. Production would continue in Philadelphia in early February of that year to play into the atmosphere of the city with Adonis adjusting to a colder environment. Coogler also wanted to bring in a few things that related to the Rocky films including Balboa training Adonis in methods that Balboa did under the tutelage of his trainer Mickey Goldmill. Coogler did not just want to bring a few Easter eggs but also wanted to maintain a sense of realism into the fights as well as drama as it relates to Balboa’s post-fight life as he is struggling with being alone and later dealing with cancer.
The film premiered on November 19, 2015, followed by a wide release a week later where the film was a critical and commercial success, grossing more than $173 million worldwide with a $108 million gross in North America over the film’s budget at around $35 million-$40 million. The film’s success would also garner accolades including the New Generation award for Coogler from the L.A. Film Critics Association as well as several awards and nominations for Sylvester Stallone including an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. The film would later spawn two sequels with Jordan directing the third film that would also be a critical and commercial success in which Coogler would be involved as a producer. Despite its success, the production was a difficult experience for Coogler as his uncle James had passed away during shooting as he would take a break from making films where he would marry Zinzi Evans in 2016 as she would later become a producer for his own films.
Black Panther
Coogler was finally attached to the project in early 2016 though plans for a 2017 theatrical release were pushed to 2018 giving Coogler time to develop a script with a writer at Marvel in Joe Robert Cole as it would be set in the fictional African country of Wakanda as Coogler had been familiar with the comic story and characters that was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee along with many other writers throughout the years. Coogler and Cole would create a storyline about T’Challa accepting his role as King of Wakanda following his father’s death in Civil War but also discovering an enemy who wants the throne of Wakanda. With Boseman having played the role of T’Challa/Black Panther to great acclaim, he and Coogler worked closely on creating a strong character as the only other actors from Civil War that would take part in the project is Florence Kasumba as the Dora Milaje second-in-command Ayo, Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross, and John Kani as T’Challa’s father T’Chaka, with Andy Serkis reprising his role as Ulysses Klaue whom he played in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
With Michael B. Jordan playing the role of the main villain Erik Killmonger and Lupita N’yongo in the role of T’Challa’s lover Nakia, Coogler also wanted to expand the cast with actors of African or African-American descent in key parts of the film with the help of Sarah Halley Finn. On July 2016, Coogler attended the San Diego Comic Con event where the announcement of the Black Panther film was announced with an ensemble cast unveiled that would include Angela Bassett as T’Challa’s mother Queen Ramonda, Danai Gurira as the Dora Milaje leader Okoye, Daniel Kaluuya as the border tribe leader W’Kabi, Sterling K. Brown as T’Chaka’s brother, Forest Whitaker as the royal advisor Zuri, Isaach de Bankole as the river tribe elder, and two newcomers for the film in Winston Duke as the Jabari tribe leader M’Baku and Letitia Wright as T’Challa’s younger sister Shuri as she would join the film in 2017. The pre-production would go on for years where Coogler wanted to make Wakanda as this futuristic yet rich African culture as he and production designer Hannah Beachler wanted to bring a realism but also pay tribute to African cultures. Added to the team of Coogler’s collaborators is costume designer Ruth E. Carter who had been known for her work with Spike Lee as she also researched African wardrobe from other countries to help create a distinctive look for the film.
Production began in 2017 as it would be shot at EUE/Screen Gems Studios in Atlanta where Wakanda would be set along with additional locations in Busan, South Korea and Oakland where Coogler would be surrounded by his team of collaborators including cinematographer Rachel Morrison, editor Michael P. Shawver, sound editor Benjamin A. Burtt with another new member to the team in Steve Boeddeker in the sound, and Ludwig Goransson who would help create a music score that played into elements of traditional African music and textures as he spent years researching different music from the continent. Goransson would also collaborate with rapper Kendrick Lamar in cultivating a music soundtrack for the film that would a mixture of hip-hop, R&B, and African music. The production was immense where Coogler wanted to present this idea of Afro-futurism as well as wanting to be a film that explored a man taking on a role and the identity, he must play for not just his own people in Wakanda but also for something much bigger. While Boseman had been diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer back in 2016, he kept his illness private from the media as he was willing to do a lot for what the film needed.
With a $200 million budget, the film premiered on January 28, 2018, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood followed by its wide theatrical release 2 weeks later during President’s Day. The film’s release was considered a landmark event as the film grossed more than $242 million in its four-day weekend with African-American entertainers and other African-American figures of wealth would rent movie theaters for children and the elderly to see the film. The film would receive widespread critical acclaim while it would make a rare feat in the North American box office grossing more than $700 million in the box office with a worldwide total gross of $1.4 billion. The film would also have a run at the North American box office that lasted for months which was also rare around the same time Avengers: Infinity War was released which also featured Boseman, Wright, Gurira, Duke, and Kasumba in the film playing their respective roles. The film was also a major success in African countries breaking box office records leading to a wave of countries creating comic series of their own.
Less than a year after its theatrical release that was followed by its home video release which added more financial success to Marvel. The film would garner many accolades as it was another rare feat for a superhero film as it received awards from various film critics circles as well as winning two Screen Actors Guild award for its stunt team and for the entire ensemble cast. At the Oscars, the film receives 7 Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Original Song, Best Sound, and Best Sound Editing while it would win three Oscars for Best Production Design to Hannah Beachler and decorator Jay Hart, Best Costume Design to Ruth E. Carter, and Best Original Score to Ludwig Goransson. The Best Picture nomination was also a rare feat for the film although its loss to the film Green Book by Peter Farrelly remains a controversial decision with many African-American figures in the entertainment industry including Spike Lee, whose film Blackkklansman was also nominated for Best Picture, saw it as a slap in the face to black filmmakers.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Plans for an early 2022 release was pushed towards the end of the year as Coogler and Cole would rewrite the entire story as it would be an exploration of grief with the focus on T’Challa’s younger sister Shuri taking on the mantle of Black Panther. It would also explore a new conflict for the Wakandans as they would learn they are not the only country to possess the fictional metal vibranium. It would also play into the events five years following the events of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame known as the Blip where other countries want vibranium for their own reasons with those in Wakanda becoming suspicious of their intentions. Coogler and Cole would create a story that also played into the ideas of colonialism not just in Africa but also have the film set in Mexico as it relates to a fictional race of underwater living beings in the Talokan led by a figure known as K’uk’ulkan who also possesses vibranium as their land is under threat from countries wanting vibranium.
With many of the ensemble cast and crew from the previous crew returning apart from cinematographer Rachel Morrison who was forging her own filmmaker career as she would be replaced by Autumn Durald Arkapaw who had been a recurring collaborator for filmmaker Gia Coppola. Added to the film’s ensemble is Michaela Cole as a rebellious Dora Milaje who would later become part of the Midnight Angels group with Okoye. In the roles of the Talokan, Tenoch Huerta Mejia would be cast as K’uk’ulkan aka Namor with Mabel Cadena and Alex Livinalli as other Talokan tribe warriors while Julia Louis-Dreyfus would reprise her role as Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine who was becoming a recurring character in recent MCU projects. Also added to the production is Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams/Ironheart as she had originally auditioned to play Shuri years ago, but Coogler and casting director Sarah Halley Finn kept the audition as called her to play Williams. Shot at the Trilith Studios in Atlanta as well as locations in Puerto Rico, Boston, and small shots in Switzerland, Mexico, and Haiti.
Production began in June of 2021 as Coogler later admitted that it was difficult due to Boseman’s passing with several actors working closely together to honor Boseman. Adding to its difficulty was an injury to Letitia Wright during filming in Boston as she was hospitalized temporarily where she would recuperate in London. Another problem during shooting was the death of Dorothy Steel who was reprising her role as the Wakandan Merchant Tribe elder as the film would also be dedicated to her along with Boseman. Despite its many issues, production would go smoothly while Coogler and music composer Ludwig Goransson wanted to go further into the music in not just utilizing an array of music from Africa but also ancient Mexican and Mayan music for its score. Barbadian singer Rhianna would also contribute two original songs to the film during post-production in 2022.
Released on November 11, 2022, the film would be a major box office hit grossing more than $450 million in North America with an additional worldwide gross of more than $405 million with a total of more than $850 million against the film’s budget at around $200 million to $250 million. While it would not achieve the same box office as its predecessor as well as the same critical response from its predecessor. The film was still a major hit with Angela Bassett getting a lot of praise for her performance including a win at the Golden Globes for Best Supporting Actress. At the Academy Awards, the film would receive five Oscar nominations including Best Supporting Actress to Bassett as well as Best Hair/Makeup, Visual Effects, Original Song to Rhianna, Tems, Coogler, and Goransson, and a win for Best Costume design to Ruth E. Carter.
Sinners
It was considered a monumental deal by many in the industry to a filmmaker with only a few films to his credit yet Coogler’s success with Marvel and two other films that did well commercially were proof of this. During pre-production, Coogler and cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw decided to have the film be shot in different film stocks and aspect ratios where the film would be shot on 65mm using a combination of IMAX 15-perf and Ultra Panavision 70 cameras as Coogler went to filmmaker Christopher Nolan for advice on shooting in 65-70mm as Nolan received a special thanks credit in the film. The production would be shot in and around New Orleans as production designer Hannah Beachler would create the place where Smoke and Stack would hold their juke-joint where Coogler also wanted to play into that period of 1930s American South. Coogler also emphasized mythology as it relates to the Choctaw tribe as it plays into the history of Mississippi where they originated from as they would make a brief appearance that would also play into the horror elements of the film. Reuniting with Francine Maisler who was one of the casting directors in Creed, Coogler would assemble an immense ensemble cast that would also include the previously announced Michael B. Jordan. Wunmi Moska, Delroy Lindo, Jayme Lawson, Omar Miller, Li Jun Li, Yao, Jack O’Connell, Lola Kirke, Saul Williams, Hailee Steinfeld, and a newcomer in Miles Caton would all officially join the film.
Production began in April 2024 for a three-month shoot where Coogler was given a $100 million budget for the film as part of the deal he made with Warner Brothers where he spent $67.6 million to shoot everything on location while hiring visual effects supervisor Michael Ralla and special effects supervisor Matt Kutcher in overseeing the visual effects. Since the film would also have actors singing and playing live in some scenes in the film, music composer Ludwig Goransson would help oversee things with his wife Serena producing the music as it emphasized on traditional blues and Irish folk music. Notably in a sequence in which Caton’s character Sammie plays the blues where it transcends time and space where mysticism and surrealism is present. The scene would have a mixture of music from the past to the music of the 21st Century where it adds to this element of mythology.
It would be a sequence that would attract the trio of vampires as there is an added twist in the film as it relates to the building that the Moore brothers bought from unaware that its landowner was affiliated with the Ku Klux Klan. Helping the Goranssons in wanting to capture an authenticity to the music is producer Lawrence “Boo” Mitchell who would help assemble various musicians in creating the music that included Brittany Howard, Raphael Saadiq, Bobby Rush, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, and blues legend Buddy Guy who would make an appearance for one of the film’s post-credit scenes. Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains and Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich would also play part in the film’s score while Hailee Steinfeld would contribute an original song to the film.
The film premiered on April 3, 2025, in New York City before opening in theaters in the U.S. more than 2 weeks later. The film would become an immense commercial and critical success where as of late June 2025, the film made more than $276 million in North America with an additional $86 million worldwide grossing more than $360 million overall against its $100 million budget. The film would also gain a positive response with critics and filmgoers as well as those in the industry who lament over the lack of original ideas in American cinema.
Upcoming Projects
With five feature films already made with all of them being successful and the upcoming return to one of the most popular film franchises that would feature one of American cinema’s legendary actors slated to appear. There is no question that Ryan Coogler is now an important figure in American cinema who makes films that do appeal to a wide audience as well as retaining a vision that is his own. Especially as he is working with the Hollywood system yet is still entrenched in his roots as an independent filmmaker. He is already becoming someone special as whatever project he will do next is going to be worth waiting for as long as he is given the time to create something that will blow audiences away. There are not a lot of filmmakers who made their first films in the 21st century that will get audiences excited for what they will do next but Ryan Coogler could be that filmmaker whose next film is definitely going to be an event as long as he continues to do what he does best.
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