Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan’s Original Genre Film Lands at Warner Bros. After Bidding War
Update, March 19: Warner Bros. has slated the film for a March 7, 2025 IMAX release.
After a heated bidding war, Warner Bros. won the rights to the latest collaboration from writer-director-producer Ryan Coogler and star Michael B. Jordan.
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Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group’s Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy confirmed the studio landed a deal with the duo for the untitled movie, based on an original script by Coogler. Details about the plot are being kept under wraps, but it has been described as an “original genre film.”
The new movie marks Coogler and Jordan’s fifth collaboration, beginning with “Fruitvale Station” in 2013 and continuing with the “Creed” and “Black Panther” franchises. De Luca and Abdy also have a successful track record with the duo, as they greenlit “Creed III” during their tenure at MGM.
News of the project surfaced last month when it was reported that Coogler and Jordan were teaming up for a mysterious new project based on a spec script from Coogler that was showcased to executives and buyers at the WME offices.
Coogler will direct the film, his first time behind the camera since 2022’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” and produce via his production company Proximity Media, along with Zinzi Coogler and Sev Ohanian. Proximity’s Rebecca Cho is executive producing.
Both Coogler and Jordan are on a hot streak: Coogler’s four directed features (“Fruitvale Station,” “Creed,” “Black Panther” and “Wakanda Forever,” all of which star or feature Jordan) have collectively earned more than $2.4 billion at the global box office, while Jordan recently stepped behind the camera for “Creed III,” which set a franchise box office record and was heralded with rave reviews. Coogler’s Proximity Media launched to the tune of six Academy Award nominations for its first film “Judas and the Black Messiah”; the company has since inked an overall exclusive TV deal at Disney, where it has a number of projects in development and is also behind the highly-anticipated Marvel series “Ironheart” for Disney+.
Coogler is repped by WME, Charles D. King at M88 and attorney Jonathan Gardner. Jordan is repped by WME and Phil Sun at M88.
Deadline was first to report news of the deal.
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