On March 19, Bruce Willis turned 70 years old. Samuel L. Jackson spoke about an incident that he realized the significance of only after «immersion» in Marvel movies.
Jackson said in the article Vanity Fair dedicated to the anniversary, about the advice Willis gave him when they were filming Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995). In a sense, it determined the actor’s life, but he did not try to fulfill it purposefully.
«He told me: «I hope you can find a character that when you make bad movies and they don’t make money, you can always go back to, that everybody loves. He said: «Arnold has the Terminator. Sylvester has Rocky and Rambo. I have John McClane». I said: «Oh, okay». And it didn’t occur to me until I got the part of Nick Fury — and I had a nine-film deal to be Nick Fury — that I was doing what Bruce said, and now I have that character.», — said Samuel L. Jackson.
Jackson first appeared as Nick Fury in the 2008 movie «Iron Man», in the post-credits scene. He burst onto the scene as the iconic Marvel character in «Iron Man 2» in 2010. Since his first appearance as Fury, he has played the role in 10 movies, 3 TV series, and 2 games. He most recently appeared as Nick Fury in movie in 2023 «Marvels» and series «Secret Invasion».
Last year, Jackson joked about whether he would have time to fulfill his contract for nine films — but it seems he didn’t realize, how fast it works «machine» Marvel. Bruce Willis is now severely ill with frontotemporal dementia and has difficulty speaking, according to in words his daughter Tallulah. In January 2025, Bruce made his first public appearance in a long time.
Source: IGN
