Samuel L. Jackson helped lay the foundation for Marvel's massively successful and unprecedented shared cinematic universe when he signed a then-unheard-of nine picture contract with the studio and popped up in the post-credits scene of 2008's "Iron Man" to tease bigger storylines to come. Since then, he has appeared in seven MCU films and served as a link between each Phase of Marvel's big plan.
But his time as Nick Fury is coming to an end and not even another on screen fake death can change his contract. While May's "Captain America: Civil War" features almost every single MCU character of note, Jackson revealed that he isn't in it. Though surprising, he's hoping it's not an indication that the character of Nick Fury has outlived his usefulness.
"It's an amazing amount of fun," Jackson said of "Civil War." "I finally met [comics writer] Mark [Millar], last year, when I was doing Kingsman, 'cause he was on set one day, and I finally got a chance to thank him for making Nick Fury black and changing the whole dynamic. It's really great to be the connective tissue between so many different characters in so many different films, that brings those guys together. But I'm not in Captain America 3. I can't figure that out, but I'm not. I guess I'm still out there, trying to figure out what happened to S.H.I.E.L.D. and who these other people are.
"But it's an amazing honor to be that guy, to be Nick Fury, to be in that particular world, and to be a character that people believe. It's great. I'm as grateful for being in that, as I was being in Star Wars with George [Lucas] and to play a character that people remember, like Mace Windu. It's all great. It's hard not to be a part of something that you know, if people study film for the next 200 years, they'll be talking about Star Wars and The Avengers series, and all that stuff."
Given the hero vs. hero nature of "Civil War," it's odd that Jackson wouldn't be included in some manner. But with just a pair of films remaining on his deal, Marvel is likely saving him for the two-part "Avengers: Infinity War" series due out in the next few years. Having said that, Jackson hopes to stick around with Marvel a lot longer than that.
"Of course [I'm interested in returning]! I'm looking for a contract extension right now, yeah. I'm looking to re-up."
With the contracts of other actors set to expire soon and the introduction of several new heroes on the horizon, Jackson could stay on with Marvel for a long time as Nick Fury shepherds in a new crop of super heroes.
Follow Brandon Katz at @Great_Katzby
