Ryan Coogler prizes discretion. One of Hollywood's most successful directors for more than a decade, he has never had his name attached to a commercial failure.
His last film, "Black Panther," made $1.4 billion worldwide for Marvel/Disney, shattering the myth that a movie with a majority Black cast wouldn't appeal to audiences outside America. Coogler's personal wealth is estimated at $25 million, but you would never know it. He's not ostentatious. He doesn't roll with a flashy crowd. The paparazzi don't pursue him. He's a hardworking Black man who keeps his head down, making compelling movies with a minimum of on-set and off-set drama.
On Jan. 7 in Atlanta, where he had been filming "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," Coogler approached the teller's window at a Bank of America branch to make a routine withdrawal to pay his child's babysitter.
