Despite both having appeared in multiple Marvel movies since kicking off the franchise with 2008’s Iron Man, it appears that Gwyneth Paltrow had no idea Samuel L. Jackson plays a prominent figure in the MCU. This comes from Marvel boss Kevin Feige, who said that while filming Tony Stark’s funeral for Avengers: Endgame, Paltrow openly questioned what Jackson was doing there, even though he’s played Nick Fury for over ten years.
In a new interview with Empire, the Marvel Studios president disclosed some behind the scenes info about the “most expensive shot in movie history,” codenamed ‘The Wedding’ during production to throw off any potential spoiler leaks. Having first revealed that Tom Holland had no idea why Michelle Pfeiffer was there – which is a bit more forgivable since Endgame was shot before Ant-Man and the Wasp had been released – Feige then detailed Paltrow’s bigger faux pas:
“Gwyneth Paltrow was asking why Sam Jackson was there, and the other actors were jumping in saying, ‘What are you talking about? He’s Nick Fury! You’ve been in movies with him.’”
Paltrow, who’s appeared as Pepper Potts seven times in the MCU, has run into this issue before. Earlier this year, the actress turned up on an episode of Jon Favreau’s The Chef Show, disputing his claim that she popped up in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Favreau, however, not only revealed that she was in it, but that they shared a scene together. Paltrow’s gaffe went viral on social media, leading Tom Holland to jokingly claim she broke his heart while doing promotion on this summer’s Far From Home.
Around the same time, the Winter Solider himself, Sebastian Stan, also divulged on Instagram that he had to reintroduce himself to Paltrow for a third time at this year’s Paris Fashion Week, despite the fact that they appeared together in last year’s Infinity War. Not to slight either Holland or Stan, but it’s one thing to overlook Hollywood newcomers, but forgetting that acting legend Samuel L. Jackson is in the MCU – of which he appears in no less than five movies that also feature Paltrow – is quite a feat.
While it looks likely that the actress’ time in the MCU is all but over after Avengers: Endgame, Far From Home’s post-credits scene implies that Jackson will play a massive role in Marvel’s next few phases. In fact, thanks to that Skrull reveal, I think we can all channel Gwyneth Paltrow’s confusion when we ask “Wait, who is Nick Fury?”