David Hasselhoff still feels he’s the best Nick Fury and wants another shot to prove it

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Don't hassle the Hoff about Nick Fury!

Many aren't aware (nor should they be) that David Hasselhoff once portrayed Nick Fury in a made-for-cable movie, situating the Knight Rider and Baywatch star as the first to portray the Marvel character onscreen (albeit the small one). Since that time, the Hoff has been very vocal about his feelings about the role, even engaging in a Twitter war with the man who currently holds the role, Samuel L. Jackson.

Recently, at the Cardiff Film and Comic Con, Hasselhoff dropped more of his thoughts about the role and even backtracked a bit on the initial criticism he gave to Samuel L. Jackson, although not quite all the way. "I was the first Nick Fury," he said. "Stan Lee put me in that. He gave me the best line ever: 'Guys like you tend to cling to the bowl no matter how many times you flush'." Apparently, Hasselhoff sees Stan Lee, creator of Nick Fury, as the true shepard of the character. "Stan Lee came on the set and told me all about Nick. "He said 'You're the ultimate Nick Fury'. He gave me the greatest compliment ever."

As far as Samuel L. Jackson's portrayal of the character, which is based on the alternate universe (aka Ultimates) version of the character, the Hoff wasn't impressed, even going on to blame the director, whom he doesn't seem to know (that's Joss Whedon, bro).

"You know, it wasn't Nick Fury. They take these shows and they make it the way they want to make it and unfortunately, they should have had Stan Lee on the set and let him kick him into gear – whoever directed [THE AVENGERS] decided they wanted to go that way. But it's their prerogative. He's still a great actor."

The Hoff is still holding out hope to return to the one-eyed, cigar-chomping secret agent role, saying:

"I was hoping to have played him in the movie. And then Samuel L. Jackson came in and he was a great Nick Fury but he wasn't really the consummate Nick Fury, the way he was written. And I think that's a shame because he's a great character and a funny character… I'm hoping to do it again sometime."

It's kind of easy to pick Hasselhoff, but he's actually right in a few respects. For one, Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury is a vastly different kind of Nick Fury than the traditional, non-Ultimate version. Although Jackson does a fine job in the role, he is definitely a far cry from the Nick Fury in the regular Marvel 616. I wouldn't want to see the Hoff in the role again, but would be interested in seeing the regular version of ol' Nick Fury somewhere down the line.

Samuel L. Jackson's next incarnation of Nick Fury will be in CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER on April 4, 2014.

What do you think? Is Sam Jackson the end-all-be-all Nick Fury or would you like to see the classic version onscreen?

Just…this…all over the place…