Ryan Coogler Wins His First Oscar for "Sinners"

Almost exactly two years ago, Ryan Coogler brought an audacious script to the Hollywood studios and asked them to bid on a package that included Coogler directing the script and Michael B. Jordan starring. Now, that script — for his Warner Bros. vampire awards juggernaut "Sinners" — has earned him his first Oscar.

The filmmaker won the Academy Award for best original screenplay on Sunday night.

Coogler kicked off his acceptance speech, asking the audience, who gave him a standing ovation, “Please, please, please sit down, ’cause I’m very nervous and they’re gonna play me off. I grew up in Oakland, California, and we can talk a lot,".

"I wanna thank the Academy for thinking of our movie that came out almost a year ago. This is an incredible honor,” the filmmaker continued. “I wanna thank my fellow nominees. I wanna thank y’all for the gifts that y’all movies were and for y’all’s friendship over the past years and months.”

Coogler went on to “thank everybody that was involved in this movie,” as well as Warner Bros. and the cast and crew of Sinners. “You guys are amazing,” he added. “Oh my God, you are all winners in my book.”

Lastly, the director showed his appreciation for his wife, Zinzi Evans, their three children and his mom.

“Zinzi, you’re the best wife and mom in the world. Every day I get to spend with you is better than the one that came before,” Coogler said. “And to my parents who are here, thank y’all for all the memories. Thank y’all for making me believe in myself. And to my babies that are at home watching, I apologize for all the time away. Dad loves you. Memories are all we have. I hope I’ve given you some great ones.”

“And when dad becomes just a memory, I want y’all to remember this one thing: I love y’all more than anything,” he concluded.

The other nominees in the category were Robert Kaplow for "Blue Moon"; "It Was Just an Accident", written by Jafar Panahi with collaborators Nader Saïvar, Shadmehr Rastin, Mehdi Mahmoudian; Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie for "Marty Supreme"; and Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier for "Sentimental Value".

Before "Sinners," Coogler was already known as an accomplished writer, co-writing hits such as "Creed" and the "Black Panther" movies. 

The film marks the filmmaker's first solo screenplay effort since Fruitvale, the Sundance drama that starred Jordan and launched both of their feature film careers. 

He landed his first Oscar nomination in 2021 as a producer of the best picture nominee Judas and the Black Messiah, and in 2023 was among the nominees for writing the "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" best song nominee “Lift Me Up.”

"Sinners" came into the 2026 Oscars with 16 nominations, the most of any film in history.

The 98th Academy Awards, hosted by Conan O’Brien, were held on Sunday at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.