Ryan Coogler Mistaken for Bank Robber, Was Just Getting Own Money

Director of Marvel Studios’ groundbreaking “Black Panther,” Ryan Coogler, was detained as a possible would-be bank robber. Spoiler- he is not.

This incident took place in January in Atlanta, Georgia where Coogler is currently in production on “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” According to reports, Coogler wrote a note on the back of a withdraw slip. He indicated a desire to remove an amount of cash (over $10k) from his own account, and requested discretion from the teller by way of not counting the cash at the counter. Pretty understandable, right?

While fulfilling his request, the female bank teller claims an alert was issued from Coogler’s account, leading to her assumption that he was attempting to rob the bank. She called authorities. Things went so far as the director being placed in handcuffs by police.

Eventually, things were cleared up, and Coogler was released before being booked or processed.

“This situation should never have happened. However, Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction and we have moved on,” Coogler said in a statement obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. This may explain why it’s taken over two months for the story to come to public light.

“We deeply regret that this incident occurred. It never should have happened and we have apologized to Mr. Coogler,” Bank of America said in a statement to THR.

“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” is currently slated to hit theaters on November 11th, 2022.