The Walt Disney Company and Ryan Coogler are building upon and strengthening their relationship. Coogler’s Proximity Media has inked a five-year overall exclusive television deal with Disney. Ryan Coogler runs Proximity Media with the help of principals Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, Ludwig Göransson, Archie Davis, and Peter Nicks. The deal will see Coogler and Proximity Media develop television series for all divisions of The Walt Disney Company.
Ryan Coogler is currently working on Black Panther II. But as part of this new overall TV deal, Coogler is already at work on developing a drama series set in the Kingdom of Wakanda for Disney+. This is some massive news and adds another new Marvel Studios Disney+ series into the mix (as this series wasn’t announced at Investor Day).
“Ryan Coogler is a singular storyteller whose vision and range have made him one of the standout filmmakers of his generation,” said Disney Executive Chairman Bob Iger in a statement. “With Black Panther, Ryan brought a groundbreaking story and iconic characters to life in a real, meaningful, and memorable way, creating a watershed cultural moment. We’re thrilled to strengthen our relationship and look forward to telling more great stories with Ryan and his team.”
“It’s an honor to be partnering with The Walt Disney Company. Working with them on Black Panther was a dream come true. As avid consumers of television, we couldn’t be happier to be launching our television business with Bob Iger, Dana Walden and all the amazing studios under the Disney umbrella. We look forward to learning, growing, and building a relationship with audiences all over the world through the Disney platforms. We are especially excited that we will be taking our first leap with Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso and their partners at Marvel Studios where we will be working closely with them on select MCU shows for Disney+. We’re already in the mix on some projects that we can’t wait to share,” — Ryan Coogler, Proximity Media
Within Coogler’s statement, one line in particular really pops out. “We will be working closely with them on select MCU shows for Disney+. We’re already in the mix on some projects that we can’t wait to share.” That’s a heavy line and obviously, we could speculate that Coogler’s Proximity Media has multiple Disney+/MCU series in the works.
Ryan Coogler founded Proximity Media alongside Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, Ludwig Göransson, Archie Davis, and Peter Nicks. Proximity Media is a multi-media company that will create event-driven feature films, television, soundtracks, and podcasts that look to bring audiences closer together through stories involving often-overlooked subject matters. Proximity is committed to developing a wide variety of projects across all budget levels.
A lot of fans will be overjoyed by this news especially considering a Wakanda-based Disney+ series has been on a lot of people’s wish lists.
Ryan Coogler’s next project for Disney is Marvel Studios’ Black Panther II which will premiere in theaters on July 8, 2022.
Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times
