Skip to main content

Samuel L. Jackson is one of the most successful and charismatic actors in Hollywood. He’s played numerous characters over his multi-decade career, including some of the most popular in film history. As of late, many audience members recognize him from his iconic portrayal of Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While this was many people’s first exposure to both the character and this casting, Jackson actually “played” Fury almost a full seven years before he appeared at the end of Iron Man.

A series of Marvel comics used Samuel L. Jackson’s likeness for Nick Fury

In late 2000, Marvel Comics began a new line of comics known as the Ultimate Universe. These aimed to be a modern take on classic characters without the decades of backstory that frequently make comics inaccessible to new readers. One such character in need of modernization was Director Nick Fury. His appearance was intentionally modeled off of Jackson when he first appeared in 2001.

While an existing character, fans who have only seen the modern comics or MCU versions wouldn’t recognize him at all. Much of the suave charm and all-black ensembles is absent from the classic Fury. (He was also white.) Though the classic Fury certainly has fans, virtually everyone can agree that the updated character is a lot more interesting and fun. So much so that he was retroactively placed into the main Marvel Comics continuity after enough time.

Samuel L. Jackson secured the role of Nick Fury after contacting Marvel about his likeness

samuel l jackson nick fury mcu
Samuel L. Jackson attends the UK Gala Screening of Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel” at The Curzon Mayfair on February 27, 2019 in London, England. | Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Disney

While fans and creators were instantly attached to the new Fury, Marvel may have jumped the gun. As BuzzFeed explained, no one at Marvel had actually secured the rights to use Jackson’s likeness for the new character. A passing resemblance would be one thing, but anyone who picked up an issue of Ultimates could tell you that he’s almost a direct copy of the actor.

In another branch of the multiverse, this might have gotten Marvel into legal trouble. Luckily, our Jackson is a major comic book fan — even a fan of the original Fury. His agent got in contact with the executives at the company over this and worked out a pretty sweet deal. Marvel could continue to use Jackson’s likeness for Fury on the condition that, if they used the character in a movie, he’d be the one to play him.

Samuel L. Jackson is one of the MCU’s most recurring actors

Related

Samuel L. Jackson Would Rather Star in Marvel Movies Than Win an Oscar. ‘I’m Not Doing Statue-Chasing Movies’

It was only a matter of time before they made good on that promise. Jackson officially made his debut as the SHIELD director in 2008’s Iron Man in the MCU’s first post-credits scene. It’s no exaggeration to say that he and the character changed the entire landscape of film on that day. Fury’s cameo set the stage for the shared universe of movies that would come.

Since then, Fury became a defining aspect of the MCU, showing up throughout the Phase 1 films as a continuity link, all building up to the massive crossover in The Avengers. He’d later play a major part in The Winter Soldier and Age of Ultron, with the character’s origins getting some attention in Captain Marvel. He also showed up for cameos here and there, particularly in Infinity War and Endgame.

Even after all this time, Jackson still isn’t tired of the character, calling it “pure joy” as late as 2019. While franchise heavyweights like Robert Downey, Jr. and Chris Evans bowed out with the climax of Phase 3, Fury is still going strong with Jackson in the role. He’s set to appear in a number of upcoming features, including The Marvels and Secret Invasion. It’s also hard to imagine he won’t at least cameo in the next two Avengers films.

Best in Entertainment