Ryan Coogler writes letter of gratitude following Black Panther's record-breaking success

'Never in a million years did we imagine that you all would come out this strong'

Black Panther has celebrated a truly historic weekend.

Amongst a string of other broken records, Black Panther now boasts the 5th highest opening weekend of all time; sitting neatly behind The Avengers, Jurassic World, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Combined with the almost universally positive critical reaction, director Ryan Coogler took a moment to pen a letter of gratitude to fans, posted to Marvel's official Twitter account. The sweet, emotional letter stresses how moved he's been by the response to the film's representation of African culture and heritage.

"I am struggling to find the words to express my gratitude at this moment, but I will try," the letter reads. "Filmmaking is a team sport. And our team was made up [of] amazing people from all over the world who believe 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."

Coogler signed the letter, with a quick "P.S. Wakanda Forever", echoing the film's own declaration.

The first solo outing for Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa, the titular hero, Marvel's latest traces the aftermath of Captain America: Civil War's events; T'Challa now returns home to Wakanda, only to find a pair of enemies conspiring to bring down his kingdom.

Alongside Boseman, the film boasts the likes of Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Forest Whitaker, Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Danai Gurira, and Daniel Kaluuya.

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