In the world of cinema, where legends share wisdom and advice, Samuel L. Jackson recounted a pivotal piece of guidance from Bruce Willis during the filming of the 1994 action blockbuster "Die Hard With a Vengeance." Willis, a seasoned actor, shared with Jackson the importance of finding a signature character that could serve as a reliable fallback in the industry.
"He told me, 'Hopefully you’ll be able to find a character that, when you make bad movies and they don’t make any money, you can always go back to this character everybody loves,'" Jackson revealed in an interview with Vanity Fair for a special feature celebrating Willis' 70th birthday. Willis drew parallels to other iconic roles, mentioning Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator and Sylvester Stallone's Rocky and Rambo. He emphasized that he himself had John McClane. This advice didn't fully resonate with Jackson until he landed the role of Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Jackson's journey as Nick Fury began with a cameo in the post-credits scene of 2008's "Iron Man." He stepped into the spotlight with "Iron Man 2" in 2010 and has since reprised the role across a vast array of media, including 10 films, three TV series, and two video games. His latest performances as Nick Fury can be seen in the 2023 film "The Marvels," the series "Secret Invasion," and a voice role in the Season 2 finale of the animated series "Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur."
Reflecting on his extensive contract with Marvel, Jackson humorously pondered his longevity in a 2024 interview with GQ. "I knew I had a nine-picture deal when Kevin [Feige] said, he was like, ‘We wanna offer you a nine-picture deal.’ I was like, 'How long I gotta stay alive to make nine movies?'" he recalled. The rapid pace of Marvel's production surprised him, as he noted, "It's not the quickest process in the world and people don't do it, so I didn't know they were gonna make nine movies in like two-and-a-half years. Which is kind of crazy. I was like 'Oh s—t, I'm using up my contracts!' but it worked out."
