Samuel L. Jackson May Not Return To Marvel

Updated 5:27 PM EST, Wed, Jan 14, 2009

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Nick Fury, the one-eyed director of super-spy organization S.H.I.E.L.D. who appeared on screen at the end of “Iron Man,” may not return to the movies, “The Spirit” star Samuel L. Jackson told the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday.

“Somebody else will be Nick Fury or maybe Nick Fury won’t be in it,” Samuel said of Marvel Studios’ upcoming slate of comic book films, which include “The First Avenger: Captain America,” “Iron Man 2” and “The Avengers.”

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According to the Times, there’s been a breakdown in negotiations for the actor to reprise his role as the secret agent – despite being used as a model for the character’s comic book incarnation in recent series “The Ultimates.”

“I saw [‘Iron Man’ and ‘Iron Man 2’ director] Jon Favreau at the Scream Awards and we had a conversation. He said, ‘I hope things are working out for you because we’re writing stuff for you.’ Then all of a sudden last week I talked to my agents and manager and things aren’t really working that well,” Samuel said.

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However, Marvel told the Times that talks were still on.

“Marvel does not comment on active negotiations,” a rep for the studio told the paper.

Like the comic books that inspired them, the upcoming films are set to have their characters co-exist and cross over into each other’s movies – an effort that’s already been showcased, as Robert Downey Jr. had a cameo in character as Tony Stark, AKA Iron Man, in “The Incredible Hulk.”

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Both films have helped set the stage for a film on The Avengers, Marvel’s signature super-team. Samuel, as Nick Fury, names them in a scene after the credits of “Iron Man,” asking Tony Stark if he thinks he’s the only superhero in the world.

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