"Samuel L. Jackson Shares Bruce Willis' Die Hard Advice, Realizes Its Value After MCU's 9-Movie Nick Fury Deal"

In a revealing conversation with Vanity Fair celebrating Bruce Willis' 70th birthday, Samuel L. Jackson shared an invaluable piece of advice he received from Willis while they were filming the 1994 action blockbuster, Die Hard With a Vengeance. Willis imparted wisdom that would resonate deeply with Jackson years later: "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." Willis used the examples of Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator, Sylvester Stallone's Rocky and Rambo, and his own John McClane to illustrate his point.

Jackson didn't fully grasp the significance of Willis' advice until he landed the role of Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His first appearance as Fury was a post-credits cameo in 2008's Iron Man, which led to a full-fledged role in Iron Man 2 in 2010. Since then, Jackson has portrayed the iconic character in an impressive total of 10 films, including his latest in The Marvels and the series Secret Invasion in 2023. Additionally, he has lent his voice to Nick Fury in three TV series and two video games, with a notable voice appearance in the Season 2 finale of Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.

Reflecting on his journey with the character, Jackson humorously recounted to GQ in September 2024 his initial concerns about completing his nine-picture deal with Marvel Studios. "I knew I had a nine-picture deal when Kevin [Feige] said, 'We wanna offer you a nine-picture deal.' I was like, 'How long I gotta stay alive to make nine movies?'" he recalled. Unbeknownst to him, the rapid pace of Marvel's production meant he would fulfill his contract much sooner than anticipated. "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," Jackson remarked, reflecting on the surprising efficiency of the Marvel machine.