Black Panther director Ryan Coogler says he was 'moved to tears' by reaction to movie in letter to fans

The superhero film has made $426.6 million (around £305 million) worldwide in a week and broken US box office records.

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People around the world have dressed up and hired out cinemas to watch the movie.

Coogler shared a photo of his letter on Instagram, which thanked fans for “caring enough” to spend time and money on seeing the film, wearing clothes that celebrate African heritage and dancing in the lobbies of cinemas, all of which “often moved me and my wife to tears”.

Black Panther, which stars Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong'o, Michael B Jordan and Daniel Kaluuya, has been praised for its actor representation and depiction of Africa.

English rapper Tinie Tempah was among those who hired out cinemas for a special screening of the movie, saying he didn't see many films with main characters "the same skin tone as me" growing up.

Read Coogler’s full letter, below.

“I am struggling to find the words to express my gratitude at this moment, but I will try.

Filmmaking is a team sport. And our team was made up [of] amazing people from all over the world who believed in this story. Deep down we all hoped that people would come to see a film about a fictional country on the continent of Africa, made up of a cast of people of African descent.

Never in a million years did we imagine that you all would come out this strong. It still humbles me to think that people care enough to spend their money and time watching our film- But to see people of all backgrounds wearing clothing that celebrates their heritage, taking pictures next to our posters with their friends and family, and sometimes dancing in the lobbies of theaters– often moved me and my wife to tears.

For the people who bought out theaters, who posted on social about how lit the film would be, bragged about our awesome cast, picked out outfits to wear, and who stood in line in theaters all over the world– all before seeing the film…

To the press who wrote about the film for folks who hadn’t yet seen it, and encouraged audiences to come out…

And to the young ones, who came out with their parents, with their mentors, and with their friends…

Thank you for giving our team of filmmakers the greatest gift: The opportunity to share this film, that we poured our hearts and souls into, with you.

Sincerely,

Ryan Coogler

P.S. Wakanda Forever