Ryan Coogler: Black Panther director mistaken for bank robber after asking teller for ‘discreet’ withdrawal

‘Creed’ director was briefly handcuffed by police

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler was mistaken for a robber when trying to withdraw money from his bank.

The filmmaker, who also directed the boxing movie Creed, was detained by Atlanta police in January after a bank teller wrongly thought he was committing a robbery.

Coogler walked into the bank wearing sunglasses and a face mask and handed the teller a slip with a note written on the back.

According to a police report obtained by TMZ, the note read: “I would like to withdraw $12,000 (£9,000) cash from my checking account. Please do the money count somewhere else. I’d like to be discreet.”

The teller then called the police believing a robbery was taking place. When the police arrived, they placed Coogler and two other people in handcuffs, before letting them all go.

The police report allegedly states that when the teller made the transaction on their computer, an alert was triggered and they notified their boss that a robbery was taking place.

The report goes on to note that Coogler requested the badge numbers of the officers involved.

Coogler is in Atlanta for the filming of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the sequel to the record-breaking Black Panther. The sequel’s production has been beset by complications including an injury to Letitia Wright, who resumes her role as Shuri, and also controversy regarding her vaccine status.

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The Independent has contacted a representative of Coogler’s for comment.

The filmmaker told TMZ: “This situation should never have happened. However, Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction and we have moved on.”