Marvel’s Secret Invasion, starring Emilia Clarke and Samuel L. Jackson, is more spy thriller than superhero action TV series

‘People doing people stuff, without all those supers,’ is how Samuel L. Jackson sums up Marvel Cinematic Universe series Secret Invasion on Disney+
He stars as Nick Fury, sometime boss of the Avengers, in a show that takes a new turn after poorly received Marvel films Eternals and Thor: Love and Thunder

TV shows and streaming video

Agence France-Presse

Published: 5:15pm, 17 Jun 2023

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Alien conspiracies, Oscar winners and hardly a superhero in sight: Marvel is taking its record-breaking franchise in a new direction with Secret Invasion, a spy thriller starring Samuel L. Jackson, Olivia Colman and Emilia Clarke.

The series, out on June 21 on Disney+, marks Jackson’s 14th Marvel film or television series, but the first time his character, Nick Fury, is the undisputed star.

Fury, the mysterious, sometime boss of the all-powerful Avengers, originally appeared on screen way back in 2008’s Iron Man – the movie that launched the entire Marvel franchise that has come to dominate Hollywood.

But the new series “ranks number one, in terms of things I’ve done in the Marvel cinematic universe”, says Jackson. “It’s a story about people doing people stuff, without all those supers coming in to save you,” he says, referring to superheroes.

Jackson at the premiere of the Marvel series “Secret Invasion” at El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles, California on June 13, 2023. Photo: EPA

The series finds US spy chief Fury battling shape-shifting, reptilian humanoids known as Skrulls – introduced in previous Marvel films – who live among us, and are intent on fomenting war between Moscow and Washington.

Fury must also contend with British spook Sonya Falsworth, played by Olivia Colman, who appears to relish her character’s loose morality, including at least one shocking torture scene.

“Sonya works for MI6. She likes wearing red, she’s quite funny and she’s potentially a little bit not that nice sometimes,” jokes Colman, with plot details strictly under wraps.

The presence of Colman, a best actress Oscar winner for 2018’s The Favourite, alongside Jackson, who was given an honorary Academy Award for his career last year, represents a casting coup for Marvel.

They are joined by Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke, as a conflicted Skrull rebel, along with returning regulars such as Don Cheadle, Martin Freeman and Ben Mendelsohn.

Olivia Colman as Sonya Falsworth in a still from in “Secret Invasion”. Photo: Gareth Gatrell

But Secret Invasion arrives at an uncertain moment for Marvel.

Since the gargantuan success of Avengers: Endgame, which in 2019 briefly became the highest-grossing blockbuster of all time, parent company Disney has churned out a whopping 18 new Marvel films and television shows.

It has not all gone to plan.

Emilia Clarke, of Game of Thrones, at the premiere of “Secret Invasion” in Los Angeles. Photo: AP

Recent films such as Eternals, Thor: Love and Thunder and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania have received the franchise’s worst-ever reviews.

A major new villain named Kang was introduced, played by Jonathan Majors – only for the actor to be arrested and charged with assault and harassment in March.

This week, Disney announced the release of Marvel films including Avengers: The Kang Dynasty will be delayed by a year.

Don Cheadle at the premiere of “Secret Invasion” in Los Angeles. Photo: AP

And the pipeline of new television shows has slowed down too, with Secret Invasion marking the first to premiere in nearly a year.

Still, its director Ali Selim promises the series will offer fans something fresh. He cites espionage thrillers such as the Graham Greene-penned The Third Man, and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation, as inspirations.

“It’s very different than people flying through the air,” he says.

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