Barry Michael Cooper, The Iconic Screenwriter, Producer, Director, And Journalist Passes Away At 66

We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of Barry Michael Cooper, the iconic screenwriter, producer, director, and journalist. According to reports, Cooper passed away yesterday, January 22, 2025, in Baltimore at the age of 66. He was an influential voice in the discourse about the detrimental effects of the 1980s crack epidemic in urban areas, later channeling these gritty and intimate depictions in some of the most important films in Urban Cinema.

Cooper was widely known for his authentic and captivating portrayals of New York City’s urban life in the 1980s and early 1990s, crafting cinematic iconography that transcends both time and the genre. He penned the screenplay for the 1991 hit, New Jack City, starring Wesley Snipes, giving us the legendary character, Nino Brown, for which Snipes earned the 1992 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture. Cooper followed this with the action-crime drama, Sugar Hill (1994), starring Wesley Snipes as Roemello Skuggs and Michael Wright as Raynathan. This film deepened Cooper’s exploration of the drug economy and its rippling effect on families, the community, and life outcomes for Black people grappling with poverty, racism, and housing segregation. Later that year, his next project, Above the Rim (1994), was released by New Line Cinema and featured Tupac Shakur, Leon Robinson, Duane Martin, and Marlon Wayans. Like the first two films in his “Harlem Trilogy,” it examined the interplay between Harlem’s drug economy and the tumultuous journey of a rising basketball star. This critically acclaimed film solidified Cooper as an visionary storyteller whose work thoughtfully examined the complexities of urban life, making him an essential voice in Black cinema and a champion of narratives that highlight systemic struggles faced in marginalized communities.

In 2005, he made his directorial debut with Blood on the Wall$, later producing the Larry Davis episode in Season 3 of American Gangster in 2008. In 2017, he also served as a producer of the Netflix series, She’s Gotta Have It, an adaptation of Spike Lee’s 1986 film of the same name. Cooper contributed as a writer for three episodes of the series. In 2019, he directed a short film named Guilt…, and also has writing credits on video games including NBA 2K16. 

Cooper’s dedication to creating informative and transformational stories beginning with his journalistic work in The Village Voice and Spin Magazine during the 1980s, to the creation of his powerful 1990s screenplays, and his close ties with the Hip Hop community proves his profound appreciation for the rich culture and history of Black people. 

Rest in Peace Barry Michael Cooper.

–Dominique Young