Ryan Coogler Praises Ava DuVernay For Making 'The Impossible Look Easy'

Ava DuVernay’s highly anticipated “A Wrinkle in Time” opened last Thursday in what would be a  record-breaking weekend, marking the first time the top two films at the box office were both movies directed by black filmmakers with budgets of over $100 million.

Ryan Coogler, whose film “Black Panther” took the No. 1 spot to DuVernay’s No. 2 film this weekend, was one of the first to congratulate DuVernay and acknowledge her influence.

“Ava is the past, present and future,” Coogler wrote Friday at espnW, calling DuVernay his “big sister” and discussing how she’s inspired him. 

“Ava DuVernay is someone who makes the impossible look easy,” he wrote. “I met her in 2013, but she’s one of those people who you feel like you’ve always known.”

The “Creed” and “Fruitvale Station” director described his friend’s achievements and noted how she has been a pioneer for onscreen representation.

DuVernay “makes the most distant dreams and ideas a reality” through her work in shows like “Queen Sugar,” Coogler wrote. DuVernay created that series in 2016, two years before inclusion riders became part of the national conversation, as Coogler points out. “Queen Sugar” has been lauded for its nuanced representation of black families.

Much like “Black Panther,” “A Wrinkle in Time” has been highly anticipated in part because of its portrayal of women and girls of color. Its cast includes Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling and Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and with 14-year-old Storm Reid in a central role, the film actively celebrates the magic of black girlhood.