‘Black Panther’ director Ryan Coogler handcuffed after mistaken for bank robber

Workers at a Bank of America branch called the police on Black Panther director Ryan Coogler after they mistakenly assumed he was attempting a robbery while he was trying to withdraw money, TMZ reported. He was briefly placed in handcuffs as a result.

The Atlanta Police Department said the incident occurred in January after Coogler went to the bank to make a transaction. But the teller who served the 35-year-old filmmaker suspected he was trying to do something criminal after he handed her a withdrawal slip with a written note behind it.

Coogler was wearing shades and a face mask at the time. And the note he gave to the teller reportedly read, “I would like to withdraw $12,000 cash from my checking account. Please do the money count somewhere else. I’d like to be discreet.”

The teller, however, became suspicious and the police were called on Coogler. The officers who arrived at the bank detained two people who were waiting for Coogler in a vehicle outside. Coogler was also taken out of the bank in handcuffs, TMZ reported.

Police said they were later able to establish what had happened was a mistake. The teller who reported the filmmaker was said to be a pregnant Black woman. The report stated that the teller informed her boss that Coogler was trying to rob the bank after her computer signaled an alert while she was attending to him. They subsequently called the police.

The report stated that Coogler demanded the badge numbers of all the officers who responded to the scene after they were ultimately released.

Production for the Black Panther sequel is taking place in Georgia, and Coogler has been spending a considerable amount of time in the state. Things have, however, not really gone according to schedule as a result of cast injuries and the pandemic.