Ryan Coogler had a rather unpleasant experience while attempting to make a withdrawal at the Bank of America in Atlanta back in January. TMZ broke the news that an Atlanta P.D. report provided some details on the incident, which wound up in the Black Panther director being briefly detained by the police. Coogler has since released a statement on the situation, and while it notes that things should never have gotten to that point, he’s worked things out with the Bank of America staff and wants to put it all behind him.
“This situation should never have happened. However, Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction and we have moved on,” the 35-year-old said.
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The sequence of events began when Coogler went to Bank of America wearing sunglasses and a COVID face mask, partially obscuring his face. He was hoping to withdraw a large amount of cash discreetly and allegedly handed the teller a handwritten note that read, “I would like to withdraw $12,000 cash from my checking account. Please do the money count somewhere else. I’d like to be discreet.”
According to police, the teller misinterpreted the situation as an attempted bank robbery when the dollar amount she put into the computer triggered an alarm on the banking system. She informed her boss with the two then calling the police. Officers arrived soon after and reportedly detained two people waiting outside for Coogler in an SUV. Coogler was then approached inside the bank and brought outside in handcuffs, soon realizing that this had been a big misunderstanding. The filmmaker, who’s been hard at work on the upcoming sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, was reportedly asking for every responding officer’s badge number. However, his statement above seems to suggest he’s put the situation in his rearview mirror.
Ryan Coogler Will Expand Upon Black Panther With a Sequel and Wakanda Series
Marvel Studios
Black Panther was a smash hit that turned Chadwick Boseman into one of Marvel’s biggest icons, and there were plans in place for him to return in the upcoming sequel. Though Boseman died in 2020, the decision was made to move forward without the beloved actor. Coogler has explained that this was because everyone involved knew that the late actor would have wanted them to keep going despite his absence in the film.
Coogler will also develop a Wakanda-based tie-in series for Disney+, but details on that project are scarce. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will be released in theaters on Nov. 11, 2022.
