Ryan Coogler
Director

Ryan Coogler

Ryan Coogler

Date of birth
Age
40
Place of birth
Oakland, California, USA
Citizenship
United States
Occupations
film director, screenwriter, writer, film producer, director
Languages
English

Biography

Ryan Kyle Coogler (born May 23, 1986) is an American filmmaker. His accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, a Golden Globe Award, ten Black Reel Awards, and fourteen NAACP Image Awards.

Coogler directed a few short films at the USC School of Cinematic Arts before his feature-length debut with Fruitvale Station (2013). He then transitioned to directing and writing franchise films, including the Rocky series spinoff Creed (2015), as well as the Marvel films Black Panther (2018) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022). Coogler also produced the historical drama Judas and the Black Messiah (2021) and the supernatural horror film Sinners (2025), which he also wrote and directed. He received  Academy Award nominations for Best Picture for both films, while for Sinners he was also nominated for Best Director and won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

In 2013, he was included on Time's list of the 30 people under 30 who are changing the world. In 2016, he was included in the annual Time 100 list of the world's most influential people. In 2018, Coogler was named the runner-up for Time's Person of the Year, and he was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. In 2021, Coogler, his wife Zinzi Coogler, and Sev Ohanian founded the multimedia production company Proximity Media.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Ryan Coogler, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Education

  • California State University, Sacramento
  • USC School of Cinematic Arts
  • Saint Mary's College of California
  • University of Southern California
  • Saint Mary's College High School

Awards

  • Sundance Film Festival U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize Award2013 Fruitvale Station
  • Producers Guild Stanley Kramer Award2014 Fruitvale Station
  • Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature2014 Fruitvale Station
  • Time 1002018
  • Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Original and Adapted Screenplay2026 Sinners
  • BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay2026 Sinners
  • Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay2026 Sinners
  • Black Reel Award for Outstanding Director2026 Sinners

Nominations

  • Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature2014 Fruitvale Station
  • Academy Award for Best Original Song2023 Lift Me Up
  • Academy Award for Best Picture2021 Judas and the Black Messiah
  • Academy Award for Best Director2026 Sinners
  • Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay2026 Sinners
  • Academy Award for Best Picture2026 Sinners

Education and awards: Wikidata information may be incomplete. Wikidata · Updated: 2026-10-27

Photos

1–3 / 11
Ryan CooglerRyan CooglerRyan Coogler

Filmography

What to watch?

Search movies and TV series