Ryan Coogler's Proximity Media Leaves Disney Behind, Signs Exclusive TV Deal With Netflix

Ryan Coogler is having a year. His film *Sinners* won him the 2026 Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, earned nominations for his directing and Best Picture, and finished 2025 as the highest-grossing original feature film of the year with over $365 million at the global box office. Now, his production company is making a significant move on the TV side.

Proximity Media Television — the banner co-founded by Coogler, his wife Zinzi Coogler, and producing partner Sev Ohanian — has signed a multi-year exclusive deal with Netflix to develop series. The move comes after the company's prior overall TV deal at Disney expired earlier in 2026.

The timing makes a certain kind of sense. Proximity built a real track record during its Disney years, overseeing *Ironheart* for Marvel Studios, the animated *Eyes of Wakanda* for Disney+, and the National Geographic docuseries *Hurricane Katrina: A Race Against Time*. That's a wide range of tones and formats, which is exactly the kind of versatility that makes a production company attractive to a platform like Netflix.

In a joint statement, the Cooglers and Ohanian said they're "thrilled to partner with Netflix, a company that has consistently demonstrated its commitment to distinctive creators and original storytelling." Netflix's Head of U.S. and Canada Scripted Series, Jinny Howe, returned the energy, calling Proximity "an award-winning television division that continues to push the boundaries of storytelling."

The company isn't coming to Netflix empty-handed. Proximity Media Television is currently in pilot production on two projects. The first is a new *The X-Files* series starring Danielle Deadwyler and Himesh Patel — a casting combination that will immediately get people talking. The second is a live-action adaptation of *Southern Bastards*, the acclaimed comic series, starring Kevin Bacon, Erin Kellyman, and Tim McGraw. Both pilots are being overseen by Simone Harris, Proximity's Vice President of Television.

For Coogler specifically, the Netflix deal represents the TV arm of a career that has consistently operated at a high level since *Fruitvale Station*. He directed *Creed*, both *Black Panther* films — the first of which was the highest-grossing domestic release of 2018 — and now *Sinners*. The film side has always been the headline. The television operation, quietly, has been building something.

Ohanian brings his own producing credentials to the partnership. He co-wrote and produced *Searching* and its sequel *Missing*, as well as *Run*, alongside his wife and producing partner Natalie Qasabian and collaborator Aneesh Chaganty. Zinzi Coogler and Ohanian have also executive produced *Judas and the Black Messiah*, *Space Jam: A New Legacy*, and *Creed III*.

What Proximity does next at Netflix — beyond those two pilots — is the actual story to watch.

[Original Source](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/ryan-coogler-proximity-media-netflix-tv-deal-1236625177/)