Actor Samuel L. Jackson has shared his thoughts on appearing in "Oscar-bait" movies. In an interview with Variety, Jackson says that he would rather focus on making more mainstream movies than ones that are typically considered for Academy Awards.
Jackson was previously nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor after playing Jules Winnfield in director Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film Pulp Fiction. However, he did receive an honorary Academy Award earlier this year. He said:
"As jaded as I wanted to be about it, you know thinking, 'Well, I should have won an Oscar for this or should have won for that and it didn't happen,' once I got over it many years ago, it wasn't a big deal for me," said Jackson. "I always have fun going to the Oscars. I always look forward to getting a gift basket for being a presenter. I give stuff to my relatives; my daughter and my wife would take stuff out. It's cool... but otherwise, I was past it."
Jackson also talked about the type of film roles he is more interested in pursuing. "I was never going to let the Oscars be a measure of my success or failure as an actor," he said. "My yardstick of success if my happiness: Am I satisfied with what I'm doing? I'm not doing statue-chasing movies. You know: 'If you do this movie, you'll win an Oscar.' No, thanks. I'd rather be Nick Fury. Or having fun being Mace Windu with a lightsaber in my hand."
Jackson first appeared as Nick Fury in a post-credit scene in 2008's Iron Man (directed by Jon Favreau), the first film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Since that time, Jackson has reprised the role in multiple films, including 2012's The Avengers (directed by Joss Whedon), 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier (directed by Anthony and Joe Russo), and 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home (directed by Jon Watts). Jackson will play the role again in the upcoming Disney+ series Secret Invasion and the 2023 Captain Marvel sequel The Marvels (directed by Nia DaCosta). Jackson played Mace Windu in director George Lucas' Star Wars prequel trilogy from 1999-2005. He also voiced the character in the 2008 animated film Star Wars: The Clone Wars (directed by Dave Filoni).
Jackson also talked about how memorable his mainstream roles are with audience. "I'm the guy who does the lines that people see on T-shirts," he said. "There's actors who go their whole careers and no one can quote a line they've said before in a movie." Aside from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars, some of Jackson's characters to appear in T-shirts and other merchandise include Jules Winnfield and Frozone/Lucius Best from Pixar's animated superhero franchise The Incredibles (directed by Brad Bird).
While no official release date has been announced for Secret Invasion, The Marvels is scheduled to be released on July 28, 2023. In the meantime, most of Jackson's appearances as Nick Fury and Mace Windu are currently available to stream on Disney+.