Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ Is Still A Cultural Force Months Later

Ryan Coogler has been dreaming about this moment for some time now.

Even after shattering industry ceilings with the success of his lauded works like “Creed” and Marvel’s billion-dollar “Black Panther” franchise, the auteur filmmaker managed to raise the bar even higher this year with “Sinners” — his refreshingly original, critically acclaimed horror juggernaut still dominating cultural discourse. The film not only became one of the year’s top-grossing releases and the most talked-about cinematic event in recent memory, but it also marked a new creative peak for Coogler, best known for tackling big IP and even bigger ideas.

Everything about “Sinners” has been proven groundbreaking from the jump, right down to that arresting juke joint montage many have hailed as the most audacious spectacles in film history. The movie itself has accomplished feats that most filmmakers, especially Black filmmakers, can only dream of achieving before age 40.

And yet, there’s still one ambition Coogler has been itching to cross off his career bucket list.

It all goes back to what the director told me is his “favorite Los Angeles event,” Cinespia, the staple outdoor movie event where we convened for a screening of his latest work, shown to a sold-out crowd on Friday at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, six months removed from its theatrical run. In its 24-season history, it marks the first time a film has ever screened at Cinespia the same year of its release.

Before introducing his movie, Coogler told the eager audience in attendance that one of his fondest memories of the film series event was attending a screening of “Coming to America” years prior with his wife, “Sinners” producer Zinzi Coogler.

That’s where the thought hit him.

“That day, I said to Zinzi, it would be wonderful if one of our films could play here,” Coogler reminisced with the crowd. “Never imagined in a million years that it would be ‘Sinners,’ and it would play the same year we made it.”

Only films that are considered instant classics can get that kind of treatment, and “Sinners” has settled into that status quite nicely since its release.

Much of that is credited to the exhilarating tale that Coogler chose to tell in his fifth film to date, a blood-soaked period piece-slash-epic thriller that depicts the Black American experience as a horror show when vampires show up in Jim Crow-era 1930s Mississippi.

Starring a dual performance from Michael B. Jordan, the film follows twin brothers Smoke and Stack as they return home to the Delta to open a blues juke joint, only for things to go horribly awry when the devil comes knocking.

It also stars Hailee Steinfeld, Delroy Lindo, Miles Caton, Jack O’Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Miller, Li Jun Li and Yao.

To Coogler’s surprise, “Sinners” took on a life of its own when it hit theaters earlier this year. From fans and critics singing its praises nonstop to sold-out screenings to immediate calls for Oscar nominations, his movie’s momentum never let up, and still hasn’t — as evidenced by the drove of fans who came dressed in full “Sinners” cosplay to see his film once more on Friday.

It’s a groundswell of support Coogler couldn’t have predicted for “Sinners,” his most daring and personal work yet, but one that’s clearly resonated beyond box-office metrics.

I’m quick to remind the filmmaker that much of the film’s early buzz was sparked by his popular masterclass-style video for Kodak, where he broke down film formats and explained the best ways to experience “Sinners” in theaters, which unexpectedly became a rallying point for audiences far and wide.

“I was really surprised, to be honest,” Coogler said of the viral response. “Because that stuff means a lot to me, and it means a lot to folks who I think are in the know. But to see that video be embraced, I could have never imagined that.”

“We talked about, like, we would have been happy if a few thousand people saw [‘Sinners’],” the director continued. “The fact that people still come up to me and talk about it, folks who are familiar with motion picture photography, but also folks that had never really engaged with it, talking about going out to see it in those formats and really loving it and going to see other movies that are being released on those formats, that’s always very special to be able to share something that you’re passionate about.”

So to see so many people still supporting “Sinners” months after its release, praising everything from its profound messaging to its seminal impact in Hollywood, and still digging deep into the movie’s lore to keep it alive and well in the cultural zeitgeist, Coogler said, “means everything.”

“This movie was so important to me,” he added. “Personally, I didn’t know if people were going to connect with it. I didn’t know if people were going to accept me as a type of filmmaker who makes a movie like this.”

“There were a lot of question marks, so this means the world to me.”

Coogler may have been unsure about how the world would receive his horror vision in “Sinners,” but it’s evident that his “calculated risk” paid off in more ways than one.

Given all the buzz the film has generated this year, people are no doubt expecting it to be a strong contender in the upcoming awards season. While Coogler wasn’t focused on accolades in the process of making or selling his film, he said, he knows that recognition is “a reality of our industry,” and believes his cast and crew have rightfully earned their place in the conversation.

“As a leader, as somebody who had to go convince people to come make the movie with me,” he said, “I want to see them get everything that they can have good coming.”

Beyond that, the filmmaker’s main hope is that “Sinners” continues to connect with audiences just as deeply as it has since it permeated the movie landscape.

“How I like to think about it is, anytime people are still thinking about your movie after they saw it — whether they voted for it in a competition or bought a ticket six months after to come sit out in a cemetery to watch it ― anytime the film lives after its life cycle in theaters, in any fashion, it’s always wonderful,” Coogler concluded.