Deadline confirms that Ryan Coogler’s (Sinners) production banner, Proximity Media Television, has signed an exclusive overall deal with Netflix. Coogler’s five-year deal with Disney+, which included the production of series such as Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time, Anthem, Eyes of Wakanda, and Black Panther, has ended, leaving projects like The X-Files Reboot, Animorphs, and Southern Bastards still in the works.
Coogler’s company, Proximity Media, is a bit of a family venture as it is co-founded by his wife, Zini Coogler, and 20-year friend and film school classmate Sev Ohanian, who makes up the other half of one of the most powerful duos in Hollywood. The company’s TV division, led by Simone Harris, which is already overseeing Ironheart and Eyes of Wakanda, has also picked up major pilot orders for an X-Files reboot starring Danielle Deadwyler (The Harder They Fall, Till) and Himesh Patel (Yesterday, Tenet). The pilot was ordered by Hulu back in February. The other active pilot is a live-action adaptation of the comic Southern Bastards, which would star the legendary Kevin Bacon (Footloose, Mystic River), Erin Kellyman (The Green Night, 28 Years Later), and country music superstar Tim McGraw (Tomorrowland, The Blindside).
Coogler has found himself to be in high demand and worth top dollar as his vampire thriller Sinners, which starred Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther, Creed), skyrocketed at the box office, reeling in an astounding $365 million. The movie was not only the highest-grossing original film last year, but it also won Coogler an Oscar, which likely played into contract negotiations. Disney may have taken a loss by failing to renew Coogler’s contract, but it hasn’t gone unnoticed that Ryan Murphy (Glee, American Horror Story) pulled the reverse trade a few years ago, ditching Netflix for Disney. If this streaming war trade rivalry continues to heat up, subscribers may end up seeing more than just Ryans being traded.