History ComicBook / NickFury

* SexGod: Creator/GarthEnnis portrays him as this. During one storyline in ''ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX'' he is roused during a mission to be updated on Castle with three women in his bed. In his own miniseries after the handicapped boy he's looking after injures himself he goes into a... well, [[JustForPun fury]] and phones for half a dozen Asian hookers.

* ''Fury'' (2001)

* BlackAndGreyMorality: Fury often uses morally questionable tactics like lying, manipulation to outright murder. Despite this he does care for other people, tries to minimize damage, and values freedom and justice. These acts are often necessary to stop people who don't care for the lives of others and often want to watch the world burn.

* RatedMForManly: He’s a major trope codifier. He charges into the fray, guns blazing, often shirtless, while [[GoodSmokingEvilSmoking smoking a cigar]].

* BadassInCharge: That "Director of S.H.I.E.L.D." title isn't just for show.

* ''Fury: Peacemaker'' (2006)

* ''Fury: My War Gone By'' (2012)

* ''Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1968)

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nick_fury_agent_of_shield_vol_1_4.jpg]]

Nick Fury is an [[TheAgeless immortal]] superspy. He has been an agent (and later director) of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}}, an international security organization. He first appeared in ''ComicBook/SgtFuryAndHisHowlingCommandos'' #1 (May, 1963), created by Creator/StanLee and Creator/JackKirby. The Howling Commandos series ran for 120 issues (May, 1963-July, 1974), featuring the World War II adventures of an army unit. In ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' vol. 1 #21 (December, 1963), an older Nick Fury appeared alive and well in the [[TheSixties 1960s]]. He was no longer with the military, instead serving as an agent of the UsefulNotes/{{CIA}}. This version of Fury next appeared in ''ComicBook/StrangeTales'' #135 (August, 1965), where Fury became the leading agent of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} and the lead of a new series. He has since served as the lead character of several series and magazines. However, the most famous version was the period with Creator/JimSteranko at the helm, that showed arty {{Surrealism}}, Op Art and graphic design sensibilities had a place in comics.

Why he is cooler than you will ever be:
----
* He has a FlyingCar.
* He parks this Flying Car in his [[AirborneAircraftCarrier Flying Base]] filled with [[RobotMe Life Model Decoys]] and psychic spies.
* He's fought radioactive robots in space.
* He's chased a warlord to another dimension to fight psychic duels with his literal EyepatchOfPower.
* He's hunted Franchise/{{Godzilla}}.
* He is a BadassNormal feared by NighInvulnerable beings.
* He is feared by NighInvulnerable beings because he has demonstrated the "nigh" portion [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu by killing several]].
* He [[UnflinchingWalk never looks at explosions]].
* He does, however ride motorcycles through explosions while shirtless and [[GunsAkimbo Dual Wielding Laser Pistols]].
* He is [[TheAgeless literally ageless]].
* He once willingly turned himself into an EldritchAbomination to save reality.
* He's beaten up UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler on ''more than one occasion''. Also generals cum terrorists.
* He was played by Creator/DavidHasselhoff in a 1998 PilotMovie.
* He is played by Creator/SamuelLJackson in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse.
* [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Xander Harris]] specifically requests he be considered Nick Fury, ''that's'' how badass he is.

[[caption-width-right:350:You will ''never'' be this badass...]]

** UpToEleven in ''{{ComicBook/Livewires}}'' [[spoiler:when a bunch of them escape and form a {{hivemind}}.]]

Nick Fury is an [[TheAgeless immortal]] superspy. He has been an agent (and later director) of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}}, an international security organization. He first appeared in ''ComicBook/SgtFuryAndHisHowlingCommandos'' #1 (May, 1963), created by Creator/StanLee and Creator/JackKirby. The Howling Commandos series ran for 120 issues (May, 1963-July, 1974), featuring the World War II adventures of an army unit. In ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' vol. 1 #21 (December, 1963), an older Nick Fury appeared alive and well in the [[TheSixties 1960s]]. He was no longer with the military, instead serving as an agent of the UsefulNotes/{{CIA}}. This version of Fury next appeared in ''"Strange Tales''" #135 (August, 1965), where Fury became the leading agent of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} and the lead of a new series. He has since served as the lead character of several series and magazines. However, the most famous version was the period with Creator/JimSteranko at the helm, that showed arty {{Surrealism}}, Op Art and graphic design sensibilities had a place in comics.

* ''ComicBook/NickFuryAgentOfShieldStrangeTales'' (1965)

Nick Fury is an [[TheAgeless immortal]] superspy. He has been an agent (and later director) of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}}, an international security organization. He first appeared in ''"Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos''" #1 (May, 1963), created by Creator/StanLee and Creator/JackKirby. The ComicBook/HowlingCommandos series ran for 120 issues (May, 1963-July, 1974), featuring the World War II adventures of an army unit. In ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' vol. 1 #21 (December, 1963), an older Nick Fury appeared alive and well in the [[TheSixties 1960s]]. He was no longer with the military, instead serving as an agent of the UsefulNotes/{{CIA}}. This version of Fury next appeared in ''"Strange Tales''" #135 (August, 1965), where Fury became the leading agent of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} and the lead of a new series. He has since served as the lead character of several series and magazines. However, the most famous version was the period with Creator/JimSteranko at the helm, that showed arty {{Surrealism}}, Op Art and graphic design sensibilities had a place in comics.

The life story of Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is relatively simple. A UsefulNotes/WorldWarII vet from [[BigApplesauce New York's]] Hell's Kitchen, Fury started fighting the [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazis]] with his [[BandOfBrothers band of brothers]] the ComicBook/HowlingCommandos first before moving onto more esoteric foes of humanity. It was sometime between moving to work for the UsefulNotes/{{CIA}} and fighting a hate-ray powered clone of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler alongside [[Comicbook/FantasticFour a walking pile of rocks]] that Fury realized that when the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.

* ''Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos'' (1963)

* ''Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. in Strange Tales'' (1965)

[[redirect:Characters/SHIELDDirectors]]

[[redirect:Characters/MarvelComicsNickFury]]

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shield_4.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:You will ''never'' be this badass...]]
[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Nick_Fury_Ultimate_005_163x340_8788.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:...Unless you're this guy.]]

Nick Fury is an [[TheAgeless immortal]] superspy. He has been an agent (and later director) of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}}, an international security organization. He first appeared in ''"Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos''" #1 (May, 1963), created by Creator/StanLee and Creator/JackKirby. The ComicBook/HowlingCommandos series ran for 120 issues (May, 1963-July, 1974), featuring the World War II adventures of an army unit. In ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' vol. 1 #21 (December, 1963), an older Nick Fury appeared alive and well in the [[TheSixties 1960s]]. He was no longer with the military, instead serving as an agent of the UsefulNotes/{{CIA}}. This version of Fury next appeared in ''"Strange Tales''" #135 (August, 1965), where Fury became the leading agent of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}} and the lead of a new series. He has since served as the lead character of several series and magazines. However, the most famous version was the period with Creator/JimSteranko at the helm, that showed arty {{Surrealism}}, Op Art and graphic design sensibilities had a place in comics.

The life story of Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is relatively simple. A UsefulNotes/WorldWarII vet from [[BigApplesauce New York's]] Hell's Kitchen, Fury started fighting the [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazis]] with his [[BandOfBrothers band of brothers]] the ComicBook/HowlingCommandos first before moving onto more esoteric foes of humanity. It was sometime between moving to work for the UsefulNotes/{{CIA}} and fighting a hate-ray powered clone of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler alongside [[Comicbook/FantasticFour a walking pile of rocks]] that Fury realized that when the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.

In 2000, Marvel launched the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe with reimagined versions of its characters, and for Nick Fury's redesign they decided to model him on Creator/SamuelLJackson; this caused some legal issues as Mr. Jackson was not asked permission for his likeness, but a deal was hashed out where he agreed to let them use it on the condition that he get to play the part if any movies involving the character were made (Mr. Jackson bears no ill-will toward the comic creators these days, especially given the success of the MCU and his role in it). Eventually they contacted him to play the role in Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse as per their arrangement, and as a result of those movies' popularity the Jackson version has become ''the'' pop-culture image of Fury and the version used in all adaptations since; Marvel has even introduced a Jackson-{{Expy}} "Nick Fury Jr." into the original continuity. Since then, Nick Fury Jr. has become the "main" Nick Fury, after the original was PutOnABus in ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'' and the Ultimate Nick Fury was killed in ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015''. Original Nick later returned for a year or so as the team benefactor in ''ComicBook/Exiles2018''.

A version of Fury also appears in Marvel's DarkerAndEdgier [[Creator/MarvelMAX MAX]] imprint universe, where he debuted before [[ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX The Punisher]]. In there, he was a main character in two comic series: ''ComicBook/FuryMax'' and ''Comicbook/FuryMyWarGoneBy'', both by Creator/GarthEnnis.

Why he is cooler than you will ever be:
* He has a FlyingCar.
* He parks this Flying Car in his [[AirborneAircraftCarrier Flying Base]] filled with [[RobotMe Life Model Decoys]] and psychic spies.
* He's fought radioactive robots in space.
* He's chased a warlord to another dimension to fight psychic duels with his literal EyepatchOfPower.
* He's hunted Franchise/{{Godzilla}}.
* He is a BadassNormal feared by NighInvulnerable beings.
* He is feared by NighInvulnerable beings because he has demonstrated the "nigh" portion [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu by killing several]].
* He [[UnflinchingWalk never looks at explosions]].
* He does, however ride motorcycles through explosions while shirtless and [[GunsAkimbo Dual Wielding Laser Pistols]].
* He is [[TheAgeless literally ageless]].
* He once willingly turned himself into an EldritchAbomination to save reality.
* He's beaten up UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler on ''more than one occasion''. Also generals cum terrorists.
* He was played by Creator/DavidHasselhoff in a 1998 PilotMovie.
* He is played by Creator/SamuelLJackson in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse.
* [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Xander Harris]] specifically requests he be considered Nick Fury, ''that's'' how badass he is.

Both original and modern versions of Nick Fury have appeared in various media adaptations.

[[folder:Media Appearances (Original)]]
[[AC:Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/XMen'' (1992-1997)
* ''WesternAnimation/IronMan'' (1994-1996): Voiced by Philip Abbott.
* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries'' (1994-1998): Voiced by Philip Abbott and later replaced by Jack Angel.
* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManUnlimited'' (1999-2001): Voiced by Mark Gibbon.
* ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'' (2000-2003): Voiced by Jim Byrnes.

[[AC:Live-Action]]
* ''Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998): Portrayed by Creator/DavidHasselhoff.

[[AC:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/ThePunisherCapcom'' (1993): Appears as playable character.
* ''VideoGame/ThePunisher'' (2005): Appears as NPC.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelUltimateAlliance'' (2006): Appears as unlockable playable character. Voiced by Scott [=MacDonald=].
** ''Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2'' (2009): Appears as unlockable playable character. Voiced by Creator/DavidKaye.
* ''VideoGame/SpiderManFriendOrFoe'' (2007): Voiced by Marc Graue.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Media Appearances (Modern)]]
[[AC:Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/UltimateAvengers'' (2006): Voiced by Andre Ware.
* ''WesternAnimation/WolverineAndTheXMen'' (2009): Voiced by Creator/AlexDesert
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'' (2009-2011): Voiced by Creator/KevinMichaelRichardson.
* ''WesternAnimation/IronManArmoredAdventures'' (2009-2012): Voiced by Dean Redman.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' (2010-2013): Voiced by Creator/AlexDesert.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Ultimate Spider-Man}}'' (2012-present): Voiced by Chi [=McBride=].
* ''WesternAnimation/AvengersAssemble'' (2013-present): Voiced by Chi [=McBride=].
* ''[[WesternAnimation/HulkAndTheAgentsOfSMASH Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H.]]'' (2013-present): Voiced by Chi [=McBride=].
* ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerbMissionMarvel'' (2013): Voiced by Chi [=McBride=].
* ''WebAnimation/LEGOMarvelSuperheroesMaximumOverload'' (2013): Voiced by Chi [=McBride=].
* ''Anime/IronManRiseOfTechnovore'' (2013): Voiced by Creator/HideakiTezuka and Creator/JohnEricBentley.
* ''Anime/AvengersConfidentialBlackWidowAndPunisher'' (2014): Voiced by Creator/HideakiTezuka and Creator/JohnEricBentley.
* ''Anime/MarvelDiskWarsTheAvengers'' (2014-2015): Voiced by Hisao Egawa.

[[AC:Live-Action]]
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse: Portrayed by Creator/SamuelLJackson.
** ''Film/IronMan1'' (cameo; 2008)
** ''Film/IronMan2'' (2010)
** ''Film/{{Thor}}'' (cameo; 2011)
** ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'' (cameo; 2011)
** ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'' (2012)
** ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' (guest appearance in 2013)
** ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' (2014)
** ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'' (2015)
** ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' (cameo; 2018)
** ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' (2019)
** ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' (cameo; 2019)
** ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'' (2019) [[note]]as himself & as impersonated by [[Film/CaptainMarvel2019 Talos]][[/note]]

[[AC:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/UltimateSpiderMan'' (2005): Voiced by Creator/DaveFennoy.
* ''VideoGame/XMenLegends: Rise of Apocalypse'': Voiced by Creator/KharyPayton.
* ''Film/FantasticFour2005'' (2005) video game adaptation of the film: Voiced by Andre Ware.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelUltimateAlliance'' (2006): Appears as an alternate costume for original Nick Fury.
** ''VideoGame/MarvelUltimateAlliance3TheBlackOrder'' (2019): Appears as an NPC. Voiced by Creator/JohnEricBentley.
* ''VideoGame/SuperHeroSquadOnline'' (2011-present): Appears as an a playable character.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelAvengersAlliance'' (2012-2016): Appears as an NPC.
* ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelSuperHeroes'' (2013): Appears as a major supporting character, and can be unlocked as playable. Voiced by Creator/JohnEricBentley.
** ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelsAvengers'' (2015): Appears as a major supporting character, and can be unlocked as playable. Voiced by Creator/SamuelLJackson (through recycling voice clips from the movies).
** ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelSuperHeroes2'' (2017): Appears only to give a subquest, but can be unlocked as playable.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelHeroes'' (2013-2017): Appears as an NPC. Voiced by Creator/KeithDavid.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelAvengersAllianceTactics'' (2014; closed): Appears as an NPC.
* ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity 2.0 Edition'' (2014): Appears as a playable character. Voiced by Creator/SamuelLJackson.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelPuzzleQuest'': Appears as a playable character.
* ''VideoGame/AvengersAcademy'' (2016): Appears as an NPC. He is briefly made available for recruitment as a playable character during some of the game's monthly events.
* ''VideoGame/MarvelFutureFight'' (2015): Added as a playable character in 2019 to tie into ''Captain Marvel''.
[[/folder]]
----
!!Tropes regarding the original Nick Fury:

* ActionDad: He had couple of sons by different mothers; Mikel and Marcus. He wasn't around while either grew.
* ActuallyADoombot: His Life Model Decoys have been used for this.
** UpToEleven in ''{{ComicBook/Livewires}}'' [[spoiler:when a bunch of them escape and form a {{hivemind}}.]]
** The man's use of [=LMDs=] is pretty infamous: in ''ComicBook/EarthX'', a whole slew of them were activated when the real thing died aboard a Helicarrier. Captain America even referred to them as a sort of "ghosts".
** [[SerialEscalation And now]] ''Comicbook/OriginalSin'' implies that [[spoiler:ALL of Fury's recent modern day appearances were potentially [=LMDs=]. The REAL Fury is an old man]].
* TheAgeless: He is physically in his 40s, 50s tops, and will not age another day. [[spoiler:Subverted in ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'', which reveals that his aging hasn't slowed as much as everyone thought - the fiftyish Fury was portrayed by a series of [=LMDs=] and the ''real'' Fury is quite a bit older.]]
* AlternateCompanyEquivalent: It's generally accepted that Sergeant Rock is DC's version of Nick Fury in his military days[[note]]Well, [[{{Expy}} technically Nick was Marvel's version of Frank Rock]][[/note]], and King Faraday is DC's version of Fury in his SHIELD days.
* ArtEvolution: Just look at the reprint of Creator/JimSteranko's run to see the artwork gradually change from an imitation of Creator/JackKirby's style to an inspired surrealist visual magic like ''nothing'' ever attempted in mainstream comics before!
* BadassBeard: Either that or a PermaStubble.
* BadassInCharge: That "Director of S.H.I.E.L.D." title isn't just for show.
* BerserkButton: People trying to tell him what to do will piss him off. Trying to take S.H.I.E.L.D. from him will piss him off. Being HYDRA will... you get the idea.
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Fury often uses morally questionable tactics like lying, manipulation to outright murder. Despite this he does care for other people, tries to minimize damage, and values freedom and justice. These acts are often necessary to stop people who don't care for the lives of others and often want to watch the world burn.
* BreakoutCharacter: Both the Original and Modern. The White Nick Fury got his start in the anthology comic strange tales and was soon moved to being a supporting character in the Marvel Universe and got many of his own series and a movie, where as the modern AKA Ultimate Universe version was so popular in that comic series that it became the new main version of the character in other media even being in the MCU played by his inspiration, Samuel L. Jackson.
* CaptainErsatz: Dirk Anger of HATE from ''ComicBook/{{Nextwave}}'' was created specifically because Creator/WarrenEllis couldn't use the real deal. Meanwhile, ''ComicBook/SunfireAndBigHero6'' has its own Fury stand-in, a Japanese woman working for that nation's Homeland Security who wears an eyepatch and is named ''Furi'' Wamu.
* TheChessmaster: In ''ComicBook/SecretWarriors'' [[spoiler:Nick has let Baron Strucker believe that he secretly controls S.H.I.E.L.D. all this time, because that puts ''him'' in a position where [[GambitPileup he can secretly control HYDRA]].]]
* ColonelBadass: Held the rank of Colonel for most of his tenure as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
* ContinuitySnarl:
** Nick Fury's eyepatch is due to receiving an injury to his left eye from a grenade during World War II. ''Fantastic Four'' #21 shows a flashback with Nick Fury without an eyepatch, before his World War II injury, when he was working for the CIA. ''Marvel: The Lost Generation'' #10 establishes Fury wore a bionic eye replacement before the modern era, which retcons the appearance of Nick Fury without an eyepatch as Nick Fury with a bionic eye implant. In ''Fury'' #1, a flashback shows the Scorpio LMD, disguised as Jake Fury, shooting Nick Fury in the left eye. This flashback is assumed to take place after Nick Fury was already wearing a bionic eye, so the shot to his eye damaged his bionic eye, otherwise, Nick Fury would have lost his left eye twice.
** Scorpio turned out to be Nick Fury's brother, Jake Fury, but that wasn't really Jake Fury -- it was an LMD of Jake Fury disguised as Jake Fury disguised as Scorpio, so the real Jake Fury was never Scorpio, until later, when the real Jake Fury impersonated being an LMD of Jake Fury impersonating Scorpio.
* ControlFreak: A very nasty one. Even after getting booted out of S.H.I.E.L.D. he still acts like he's in charge. Fury hates not being in charge of a situation.
* CrazyPrepared: He's got special bunkers hidden all over the world, and a list of super-humans no-one else knows about that he saves for rainy days.
* DarkerAndEdgier: The MAX version, which was created by Creator/GarthEnnis for a six-issue miniseries and later appeared in Ennis's Punisher MAX series. In all of his appearances he drinks, smokes, swears, has sex with hookers, disobeys orders and beats people up while complaining about how little combat he sees and how pathetic modern society is. While certainly badass and fitting of the MAX label, this portrayal drew notable criticism from Stan Lee, who was openly disgusted by it.
** He could also be astoundingly stupid. At about the midpoint of My War Gone By, he actually argues that Americans shouldn't be complaining about our involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq because ''Vietnam was so much worse''...never mind tu quoque, whataboutism, guns versus butter, realpolitik, war weariness, and not making the same colossal mistake twice. Seriously, he managed to live 90+ years without learning about any of that?
* DatingCatwoman: With Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine, a long on again, off again foe.
* DeadpanSnarker: Nick Fury ALWAYS has something to say when he's in a fight.
-->'''Baron Strucker:''' BAH! The drink was just insurance! I can destroy you ''without'' it!\\
'''Nick:''' Yeah? '''HOW?''' Like ''this''? Or mebbe a punch like '''THIS'''?? Tell me, Nazi! I'm dyin' to find out!
* DeathIsCheap: Nick Fury refuses to stay dead while there's still fights needing fought.
* DecompressedComic: Before it was fashionable in American comics to stretch stories over six or so issue, the Steranko run managed to make the Yellow Claw Saga run for ''nine issues long''.
* DrillSergeantNasty: God help you if Fury decides he's going to teach you.
* EasilyForgiven: By the heroes whose minds he wiped without their consent during ''Secret War''. Steve, who was angrier than everyone except Wolverine, even explicitly praised Fury in a later storyline.
* EmpoweredBadassNormal: Nick is just your average combat-hardened joe from the Big Apple... who doesn't age. Because of drugs. Awesome drugs. Given all the other superheroes, he's as close to [[BadassNormal a normal hero]] as you'll get.
* EvilTwin - Sort of. He has an LMD that developed an individual consciousness and thought it was the real thing. It took a while for it to go evil. At first, he just went rogue and spent years dismantling terrorist cells.
* EyepatchAfterTimeSkip: He lost his eye somewhere between his Sergeant Fury and Director Fury days.
* EyepatchOfPower: Fury's eyepatch is one of his most well-known traits and helps signify that he is a huge badass.
* EyeScream: Why do you think he wears an eye-patch? He lost his eye to a Nazi's grenade back in World War 2 as revealed in issue 27 of Nick Fury and his Howling Commandos.
* HandicappedBadass: Having one eye doesn't slow Nick Fury down.
* ImportantHaircut: Fury marked his transition from World War II frontline badass to SHIELD superspy by getting a haircut and shaving off his perma-stubble.
* InsertGrenadeHere: During his Howling Commando days.
* {{Jerkass}}: He takes this trope and makes it a freaking ''artform''.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: It's because of this that people like Captain America and Wolverine value him as a friend.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: {{Invoked|Trope}}. Nick Fury claimed this for himself in back in the '70s ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'' comic. After he'd spent a whole issue getting ComicBook/TheFalcon pardoned for his criminal past, Cap remarked, "Fury, under that rough, unshaven exterior..." Fury interrupted, "There's an even rougher, unshaven interior!" Of course, in this case, it's very blustering; while later writers did make Fury genuinely amoral, around this time he was still a pretty straightforward bleeding-heart hero.
* MadeOfIron: He’s over 80 years of getting his ass beat, but he still stands up and kicks major ass. That is until Original Sins.
** In one of the most absurd instances, during a fight with Wolverine, Wolverine tackled Fury into a wooden cabin. The mutant's super strength caused the entire cabin to come down on Fury but he just bounced back up. And that was just the beginning.
* ManipulativeBastard: Very much so. It's why he chose the people he chose for the Secret Warriors, because they were the most likely to do as he told, and the most likely to accept the choice.
* MookChivalry: Played hilariously straight in ''Strange Tales'' #157, when a HYDRA leader tells his men to attack Fury using "Plan K-11," meaning they each go at him one at a time... allowing him to beat them all up one at a time.
* MoralityPet:
** Daisy Johnson/Quake is his, and seems to be the closest thing he has to a daughter. He treats her the same as he treats everyone else.
** Failing that, Dum Dum Dugan's the nearest replacement.
* MythologyGag: If Fury needs a disguise in a story written by Bendis, he will use a hologram that looks like Ultimate Fury. Ultimate Fury will, on the other hand, use a hologram that looks like the original Fury.
* NeverMyFault: If something goes wrong, Fury will never be at fault. It'll all be someone else's, even if it actually is his fault. Sometimes it just depends on what happened. ComicBook/SecretWarriors has him admit that every life he ever sent to battle was his own fault, which is why Baron Strucker can't actually claim the responsibility of getting his son killed. In ComicBook/OriginalSin, he tells Captain America IDidWhatIHadToDo, and he's not sorry for any of it, except for the punch that he then gives to Cap.
* OpeningACanOfClones: The [=LMDs=] (Life Model Decoys) make his deaths less than believable.
* PermaStubble: Depending on the artist.
* PutOnABus: Vanished from Marvel after 2005 and returned in the lead-up to ''ComicBook/SecretInvasion''. After ''ComicBook/FearItself'', he disappeared again, being replaced by his son; until he resurfaced for ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'' before [[spoiler:being turned into TheWatcher's successor]] and vanishing again. He then returns in ''ComicBook/Exiles2018'' as the new team's benefactor.
* RatedMForManly: He’s a major trope codifier. He charges into the fray, guns blazing, often shirtless, while [[GoodSmokingEvilSmoking smoking a cigar]].
* ScrewPolitenessImASenior: With a slowed-down aging process, but yeah.
* SeenItAll: He's moving towards the century mark, has been in three wars (WWII, Korea and Vietnam), worked for the CIA before moving on to S.H.I.E.L.D. and has been through paratrooper, demolition, Army Ranger and Special Forces training. All this ''before'' he started taking on super villains as the boss of SHIELD.
* SergeantRock: Fury is basically the AlternateCompanyEquivalent of [[{{Comicbook/SgtRock}} the guy who named the trope]]. He then moved on to become a ColonelBadass.
* SexGod: Creator/GarthEnnis portrays him as this. During one storyline in ''ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX'' he is roused during a mission to be updated on Castle with three women in his bed. In his own miniseries after the handicapped boy he's looking after injures himself he goes into a... well, [[JustForPun fury]] and phones for half a dozen Asian hookers.
* ShellshockedVeteran: His MAX series and appearences in ''ComicBook/ThePunisherMAX'' portray him as this, disillusioned with Iraq, looking after a young boy who he wants to mercy kill, drinking heavily, sleeping with multiple hookers, and beating the crap out of US generals when they resort to terrorism.
* SinkOrSwimMentor: In ''Secret Warriors'', he makes all of his recruitment undergo a SecretTestOfCharacter by torturing them and seeing if they reveal anything. Keep in mind, this is pretty early in the training process.
* SmokingIsCool: It was even a RunningGag that his connections could get him Cuban Cigars. Subverted during Joe Quesada's reign in Marvel; he banned smoking by iconic characters, including Fury.
* TheSpymaster: He fits this trope to the tee. Helps that this a job usually as a former head of S.H.I.E.L.D.
* SuperHeroOrigin: A badly wounded young soldier called Nick Fury stumbled into the laboratory of a French biochemist. The only treatment to hand was an experimental longevity drug...
* TuxedoAndMartini: Fury started out slightly more Stale Beer but rapidly became some kind of radioactive psychosis-inducing cocktail. Steranko even marked the transition, with Nick shaving the scruffy stubble he'd had since WWII.
* WalkingShirtlessScene: In his days with the Howling Commandos, and in the early ''Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' stories, Nick usually got his shirt ripped off or destroyed well before the halfway point of the story. Later on, S.H.I.E.L.D. uniforms came to be made of more durable materials.
* WillTheyOrWontThey: With Contessa de Fontaine. As of 2014, they're on "won't".

!!Tropes about the various Creator/SamuelLJackson-inspired Furies:
* ActionDad: Ultimate Fury might be, since his ex-wife has a son, though whether he's Fury's son hasn't been confirmed.
* AffirmativeActionLegacy: In the main comics continuity, Nick Fury Jr. is the black successor to the original white Nick Fury.
* ArtificialLimbs: Ultimate Nick Fury lost an arm in an invasion of America. It was eventually replaced with a cybernetic version.
* ArtisticLicenseMilitary: Nick Fury Jr. was supposedly a West Point graduate and then went on to become an Army enlistedman. West Point graduates go on to be officers.
* BadassInCharge: The "Director of SHIELD" title generally carries over here, though not for Fury Jr.
* BadassLongcoat: Most versions of this Fury prone to wearing these.
* BaldBlackLeaderGuy: Practically a given seeing that they tailored Ultimate Nick Fury from the likeness of TropeCodifier [[Creator/SamuelLJackson Samuel L. "Muthafuckin'" Jackson]]. Though there are some exceptions:
** The Nick Fury in both ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow'' and ''WesternAnimation/IronManArmoredAdventures'' had hair.
** WordOfGod stated that ''WesternAnimation/WolverineAndTheXMen'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' is set in the same universe, and the Fury of those series retains most of his 616 features save for ethnicity; funnily enough, in Season 1 of ''EMH'', Fury ends up looking like [[Film/PulpFiction Jules Winfield]] with an eyepatch! He later becomes this trope in season 2, as he's shaved his head, grew a beard, and looks like Ultimate Fury.
** Also averted in ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}''; it's a prequel to most of the rest of the MCU, and Fury is neither bald nor a leader yet.
* BaldOfAwesome: These versions of Fury are usually bald, and kick just as much ass as the original Fury, in addition to typically being TheSpymaster in charge of SHIELD.
* BerserkButton: Ultimate Fury gets ''furious'' when Peter Parker makes a sarcastic comment about his eye.
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Another way these versions take after the original, though Nick Fury Jr. isn't comfortable with it yet.
* CanonImmigrant: ''Battle Scars'' (a ''ComicBook/FearItself'' epilogue) introduces Marcus Johnson, a black marine sucked into the world of superheroes when it was discovered he's Fury's son (by way of a black agent the original Fury dated). By the end of the event - coincidentally just as the ''Avengers'' movie premiered - he'd lost his eye, shaved his head, and all in all become Ultimate Nick Fury in the non-Ultimate universe (it's even found out that his birth name is really "Nicholas Fury, Jr.").
* ColonelBadass: The Cinematic Universe Fury holds the same rank as the original one. We don't really know what ranks most other versions hold, though the Ultimate Fury was a [[FourStarBadass General]] and Fury Jr. was a Sergeant.
* ComicBookFantasyCasting: As noted, he's explicitly based on Creator/SamuelLJackson.
* CompositeCharacter: Most adaptations combine the appearance and mannerisms of the Ultimate Fury with the personality and stronger moral code of the original. A few early animated versions even gave him the original Fury's hairstyle and blue costume instead of the bald pate and black jacket.
* CrazyPrepared: Yep, this carries over too.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Ultimate Nick Fury, [[RaceLift no pun intended]], is corrupt and has done immoral things to stay in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D.
* EmpoweredBadassNormal: Ultimate Fury has some powers even if he doesn't display them much, and Fury Jr. as the same anti-aging formula as the original. Other versions tend to be just straight-up {{Badass Normal}}s.
* EvilVersusEvil: Ultimate Nick Fury is notably darker than the original. A few feats including working with Ultimate Doctor Doom to tamper with one of Richard's probes, preferring to work with Ultimate Iron Man's more amoral older brother Gregory Stark, and secretly hiring the Ultimate version of the Red Skull to regain his position as the head of SHIELD.
* EyepatchOfPower: Wouldn't be Nick Fury without one.
* EyeScream: The story behind the eyepatch changes for each version. Ultimate Fury lost his in the early 90s in Afghanistan, Fury Jr. lost his in the events of the ''Battle Scars'' mini that introduced him, in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' he lost it raiding a HYDRA base, and all that the Cinematic Universe version will say is that he lost his "the last time [he] trusted someone". It turns out it was [[spoiler:just [[AntiClimax scratched by an alien cat]], though he's certainly willing to let people ''think'' he got it doing something badass]].
* GenerationXerox: Marcus Johnson's friendship with Phil Coulson mirrors that between Nick Fury Sr. and Dum Dum Dugan; from their past serving together in the military and joining S.H.I.E.L.D. He's also missing the same eye that his father is.
* HandicappedBadass: Missing an eye, like the original.
* MythologyGag:
** As stated above, if Fury needs a disguise in a story written by Bendis, he will use a hologram that looks like Ultimate Fury. Ultimate Fury will, on the other hand, use a hologram that looks like the original Fury.
** Nick Fury, Jr.'s friendship with Phil Coulson in the comics universe unsurprisingly mirrors Nick Fury and Phil Coulson's friendship in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse.
* PungeonMaster: The Cinematic Universe Fury is prone to making eye-related one-liners.
* RaceLift: His Earth-616 incarnation is a white guy with an eyepatch. These versions are Creator/SamuelLJackson with an eyepatch.
* RuleOfCool: The reason Ultimate Nick Fury was written as Samuel L. Jackson.
* SoulBrotha: Sometimes portrays an interest.
* TheSpymaster: Again, Fury Jr. excepted; he's still a rookie at this.
* SuperPrototype: Ultimate Fury was an American soldier who GotVolunteered for Operation: Rebirth. He was the first test subject to not die in the process, and he quickly took the opportunity to run for it. He doesn't make a habit of showing off his powers, though.
----

In 2000, Marvel launched the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe with reimagined versions of its characters, and for Nick Fury's redesign they decided to model him on Creator/SamuelLJackson; this caused some legal issues as Mr. Jackson was not asked permission for his likeness, but a deal was hashed out where he agreed to let them use it on the condition that he get to play the part if any movies involving the character were made (Mr. Jackson bears no ill-will toward the comic creators these days, especially given the success of the MCU and his role in it). Eventually they contacted him to play the role in Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse as per their arrangement, and as a result of those movies' popularity the Jackson version has become ''the'' pop-culture image of Fury and the version used in all adaptations since; Marvel has even introduced a Jackson-{{Expy}} "Nick Fury Jr." into the original continuity. Since then, Nick Fury Jr. has become the "main" Nick Fury, after the original was PutOnABus in ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'' and the Ultimate Nick Fury was killed in ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015''. Original Nick later returned as the benefactor of the 2018 version of the ''ComicBook/{{Exiles|2018}}''.

* DatingCatwoman: The Contessa, a long on again, off again foe.

* PutOnABus: Vanished from Marvel after 2005 and returned in the lead-up to ''ComicBook/SecretInvasion''. After ''ComicBook/FearItself'', he disappeared again, being replaced by his son; until he resurfaced for ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'' before [[spoiler:being turned into TheWatcher's successor]] and vanishing again. He then returns in the 2017 reboot of ''ComicBook/{{Exiles}}'' as the new team's benefactor.

* EyeScream: Since these versions aren't a simple EyepatchAfterTimeSkip, they tend to go into just how Fury lost his eye. Ultimate Fury lost his in the early 90s in Afghanistan, Fury Jr. lost his in the events of the ''Battle Scars'' mini that introduced him, in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' he lost it raiding a HYDRA base, and all that the Cinematic Universe version will say is that he lost his "the last time [he] trusted someone". It turns out it was [[spoiler:just [[AntiClimax scratched by an alien cat]], though he's certainly willing to let people ''think'' he got it doing something badass]].

* ComicBookFantasyCasting: The Nick Fury of ''ComicBook/TheUltimates'' was designed after Samuel Jackson's likeness.

* ArtisticLiscenseMilitary: Nick Fury Jr. was supposedly a West Point graduate and then went on to become an Army enlistedman. West Point graduates go on to be officers.

* AristicLiscenseMilitary: Nick Fury Jr. was supposedly a West Point graduate and then went on to become an Army enlistedman. West Point graduates go on to be officers.

* EyeScream: Why do you think he wears an eye-patch?

* BreakoutCharacter: The original and Modern. The White Nick Fury got his start in the anthology comic strange tales and was soon moved to being a supporting character in the Marvel Universe and got many of his own series and a movie, where as the modern AKA Ultimate Universe version was so popular in that comic series that it became the new main version of the character in other media even being in the MCU played by his inspiration, Samuel L. Jackson.