Hollywood filmmaker, Ryan Coogler joins the small list of directors who own the rights to their films, as “Sinners” will return to him in 2050.
Ryan Coogler makes history with “Sinners” Ownership Deal
BY Oluwatomiwa Ogunniyi
April 23, 2025
8:07 am
Ryan Coogler has made film industry history by securing full ownership rights to his latest release, “Sinners,” joining an exclusive group of only three directors to ever achieve such terms.
The Jim Crow-era Southern drama starring Michael B. Jordan opened at #1 at the box office with $48 million – the biggest opening for an original film post-COVID in the United States. In Nigeria, the film grossed over N79.6 million, becoming the highest-grossing movie of its opening weekend as previously reported by TNR.
According to data released by FilmOne Entertainment, this figure places “Sinners” among the highest-grossing Hollywood debuts in Nigeria for the year.
Under the agreement with Warner Bros., Coogler will gain complete ownership of “Sinners” 25 years after its April 18 release. The deal also granted him first-dollar gross points and final cut approval. While “Sinners” will be his first owned feature film, the director has indicated he doesn’t plan to seek ownership for future projects.
This rare achievement places Coogler alongside directors like Quentin Tarantino, who negotiated with Sony for copyright ownership of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” after 30 years, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter in 2019. Other directors who have secured ownership stakes include George Lucas and Richard Linklater.
The Southern Gothic supernatural thriller from the celebrated director opened in theaters April 18, marking a historic achievement in an industry where studios typically maintain permanent ownership of content.
