‘Black Panther’ Director Ryan Coogler is Wrongfully Detained By Police as Body Cam Footage is Released
One of Marvel’s most important visionaries has been on the unfortunate side of a recent event as Black Panther and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Director Ryan Coogler is wrongfully detained by police as body cam footage is released.
There are few Marvel films that have received the level of critical acclaim and cultural relevance as Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther franchise.
Photo: Marvel
The original 2019 MCU film is still the only Marvel Studios production to be nominated for the Best Picture Academy Award and remains a Seminole Marvel film in their decade-long pantheon of projects.
With the sequel in development, it appears as though the unthinkable has happened, as Ryan Coogler was wrongfully detained by police in an incident involving a legal bank withdrawal.
The 'Black Panther' director was briefly detained in Atlanta where he's been filming 'Wakanda Forever.' https://t.co/KayBm3Loxh
— TMZ (@TMZ) March 9, 2022
The ordeal was first reported by TMZ, as the bodycam footage has been made available by the media organization yesterday, showing the incident involving the acclaimed director.
The initial TMZ report stated that “Bank staffers mistakenly thought Ryan Coogler was staging a robbery — so they called cops, and the famed director actually ended up in handcuffs.”
Ryan Coogler was clearly stunned when cops pulled guns on him as he tried to make a legal withdrawal from his bank account … and it was all caught on police body cam footage. pic.twitter.com/tlFWNSK5iQ
— TMZ (@TMZ) March 10, 2022
The media site managed to obtain the official Atlanta PD report, which TMZ reports states, “Coogler was detained after stopping in a Bank of America to make a transaction back in January– a completely legal transaction.”
The unfortunate incident seemed to happen because the director, “handed the teller a withdrawal slip that had a note written on the back.”
"Black Panther" director Ryan Coogler was detained by police in Jan. after he was mistaken for a bank robber. He says: "This situation should never have happened…Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction. We have moved on.” https://t.co/rkE5BrcP24
— Variety (@Variety) March 9, 2022
The note stated, “I would like to withdraw $12,000 cast from my checking account. Please do the money count somewhere else. I’d like to be discreet.”
The bodycam footage was recently released showing the altercation in greater detail, and the director contacted TMZ with the following statement:
This situation should never have happened. However, Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction and we have moved on.
Danai Gurira and Ryan Coogler. Photo: IndieWire
The situation was certainly unfortunate, and we are happy that Coogler has been able to look past it now.
