Sam Jackson is trying to hold a metaphorical gun to Marvel’s head. In a short conversation with the LA Times, he says that negotiations to place him in Iron Man 2 (and The Avengers and Captain America) are stalling.
“There was a huge kind of negotiation that broke down. I don’t know.
Maybe I won’t be Nick Fury. Maybe somebody else will be Nick Fury or
maybe Nick Fury won’t be in it. There seems to be an economic crisis in
the Marvel Comics world so [they’re saying to me], ‘We’re not making
that deal.'”
Jackson says he talked to Iron Man 2 director Jon Favreau recently, who said they were writing stuff in for Jackson with the hope that things were going well at the deal-making stage. “Then all of a sudden last week,” Jackson says, “I talked to my agents and manager and things aren’t really working that well.”
Hope Jackson keeps a DVD copy of The Terrence Howard Story around, because I don’t see Marvel bending very far to keep him. It would be a shame if the Jackson Nick Fury didn’t happen, but a change-up now would hardly count as a massive PR disaster to the audience that made Iron Man huge. Perhaps Jackson hopes that by speaking out to the LAT he can force a wedge into the negotiation. But I’m afraid he might find out just how much (or little) Marvel and the general public really care whether he’s Nick Fury or not.