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Legend to legend, this is indeed a valuable piece of advice. Samuel L. Jackson shared the wisdom Bruce Willis imparted to him while they were filming the 1994 action blockbuster Die Hard With a Vengeance.
"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 to Vanity Fair in a special feature celebrating Willis' 70th birthday.
"He said, 'Arnold [Schwarzenegger]'s got Terminator. Sylvester [Stallone]'s got Rocky and Rambo. I’ve got John McClane.' I’m like, 'Oh, okay.' And it didn’t occur to me until I got that Nick Fury role — and I had a nine-picture deal to be Nick Fury — that, 'Oh, I’m doing what Bruce said. I’ve got this character now.'"
Jackson first appeared as Nick Fury in a post-credits scene cameo in 2008's *Iron Man*. He then fully embraced the role in 2010's *Iron Man 2*. Since his debut, Jackson has reprised the role in 10 films, three TV series, and two video games. His most recent portrayals include 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*.Last year, Jackson humorously questioned whether he would live long enough to fulfill his nine-film contract with Marvel, not realizing how rapidly the Marvel machine operates.
"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 shared with GQ in September 2024.
"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."
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