'Black Panther's Ryan Coogler To Receive CinemaCon Director Of The Year Award

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler will be honored with the Director of The Year Award at CinemaCon, it was announced Monday.

The annual convention, hosted by The National Association of Theatre Owners, will be held April 23—26 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Coogler will be presented with the honor at the CinemaCon Big Screen Achievement Awards ceremony taking place Thursday, April 26 at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, hosted by Coca-Cola.

"In just a few short years, Ryan Coogler has positioned himself as one of the most dynamic, talented and successful directors of our time," said Mitch Neuhauser, Managing Director of CinemaCon.

"With the release of Black Panther, he has given us a film that is not just a box office juggernaut in grossing more than $1.3 billion globally, but a film that has crossed all cultures and ethnicities and has resonated beyond anyone's wildest imagination from a societal standpoint. His is a landmark film and we couldn't be more delighted to be honoring him as our Director of the Year."

Coogler, fresh off 2015 smash hit Creed, steered Marvel Studios' latest to $1.3 billion worldwide, making it one of the most successful movies of all time.

Black Panther is the third-biggest release domestically of all time, and is the first film since James Cameron's Avatar to spend five weeks in first place at the box office.

The blockbuster also holds the record for number two four-day holiday weekend debut, behind only Disney's own Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and holds the biggest February debut of all time with $202 million.

Domestically, this makes Black Panther the number one superhero movie of all time, and the tenth highest-grossing movie of all time worldwide.

CinemaCon regularly hosts the industry's biggest and brightest talent, with this year's ceremony scheduled to honor Benicio Del Toro (Avengers: Infinity War), Samuel L. Jackson (Captain Marvel), Felicity Jones (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect 3), and Kate McKinnon (Ghostbusters).

Black Panther stars Chadwick Boseman (T'Challa), Danai Gurira (Okoye), Winston Duke (M'Baku) and Letitia Wright (Shuri) will next return to help defend Wakanda, and the universe, in Avengers: Infinity War, in theaters April 27.