Additional Coverage:
- Ryan Coogler explains the personal reason he fought to own the rights to his new movie ‘Sinners’ and none of his other films (businessinsider.com)
Ryan Coogler’s upcoming film, “Sinners,” a Jim Crow-era vampire story infused with blues music, sparked a studio bidding war earlier this year. Warner Bros. ultimately secured the project, agreeing to Coogler’s unique stipulation: ownership of the film 25 years after its release. While this might seem like a power play by the successful director, Coogler revealed his motivation is deeply personal.
The film, featuring Michael B. Jordan as identical twin brothers who inherit a juke joint in 1930s Mississippi, resonated with Coogler’s family history.
Inspired by his Mississippi-born grandfather and his late uncle, a blues and baseball aficionado, Coogler felt a strong connection to the story’s themes of Black ownership during a turbulent time in American history. Acquiring the rights, he explained, was symbolic and tied directly to the film’s narrative.
Coogler confirmed “Sinners” is the first of his films he will own, stating this arrangement is unique to this project and not a precedent for future work. “Sinners” premieres in theaters on April 18.