Ryan Coogler has become synonymous with the Black Panther movies since the director helmed both the landmark Best Picture nominee and its 2022 sequel. Yet, this year, he has one of the highly-anticipated upcoming horror movies on the way. I’m talking about Sinners, which will be released this spring. Just recently, the visionary filmmaker has contrasted the experiences of making this new vampire movie and bringing Wakanda to life.
When the Judas and the Black Messiah producer debuted the new Sinners trailer this week, the filmmaker contrasted this new flick with the many years he previously spent working on the Black Panther movies. Per ComicBook.com, Ryan Coogler called himself “the luckiest guy in the business” when it comes to the casts he’s had the chance to work with. As he continued:
This cast reminds me of the [Black] Panther films, but in a way that’s maybe more exciting in that, when audiences watch this, this is gonna be the first time they see these people – there’s no comic books on it. They really made a community when we were filming down in the South, they really looked out for each other.
As far as its cast goes, the horror film is led Michael B. Jordan, who’s teaming up with Ryan Coogler for the fifth time. Coogler and Jordan have been making movies since the writer/director made his debut feature, 2013’s Fruitvale Station, and they’ve been inseparable ever since, with collaborations on Creed, the Black Panther movies (which remain some of the best Marvel movies) and now, Sinners. Interestingly, this time around, Jordan will be playing two roles, as twin brothers Smoke and Stack.
It’s great to hear the Oakland native praise his cast and refer to working with them as “more exciting” than his Marvel films, because this movie isn’t based on “any pre-existing material.” With that, he noticed the cast really “took ownership of their characters,” which was really exciting for the filmmaker. Don’t get me wrong, the BP movies are great, but I can understand how working on something totally original with a talented cast would be slightly more enticing.
It’s wild to think that this is the first time in Coogler’s career that he’s had the chance to do this. Fruitvale Station was based on true events, and Creed is a spinoff of the Rocky movies. And, of course, Black Panther is adapted from comic books. Ryan Coogler’s words about how “amazing” it was to work on his latest film is certainly exciting, considering what he’s already accomplished with adapted material. So what can we expect from his latest flick. Check out the trailer below:
When CinemaBlend spoke to Ryan Coogler about his influences for Sinners, the filmmaker got us excited by name-dropping the Coen Brothers, Robert Rodriguez and John Carpenter. Sounds like the period piece will have a lot of personality along while also from some great horror movies of the past. You can look forward to seeing this fresh and exciting release when it opens in theaters on April 18.