The rivalry between Marvel and DC is starting to bleed from comic books into the movie business. One of Marvel Studios' heaviest hitters, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), is throwing some shade at the citizens of Gotham and Metropolis.

Speaking to MTV News about the immense and unexpected popularity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jackson mentioned that he’s surprised at how much excitement the studio is able to drum up over its principal competitor. “I think Marvel has figured out a way to make those movies accessible to the public that DC hasn’t,” Jackson said. “I don’t know what that is. I don’t know why you can’t get Batman and Superman people as juiced up to be a part of that.”

In defense of DC, Marvel has had nothing like the success of Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” trilogy. That said, it’s also had nothing similar to the failure of Ryan Reynolds' “Green Lantern” movie. It’s looking more and more like the upcoming hero mashup “Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice” will decide whether Marvel has a rival for the next five years or establishes dominance with “Avengers: Age of Ultron."

Speaking of Marvel’s future, Jackson has been pretty characteristically forthcoming with details about the future of his character Nick Fury. Unlike Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man) and Chris Evans (Captain America), who are rumored to be looking for a polite and quiet way to exit the franchise, Jackson said he’s willing to keep playing the character as long as Marvel Studios lets him.

“I’m totally cool doing Nick Fury as long as they keep writing him in these films or whatever he’s doing. But it seems like right now he’s on that same path as Jules,” the actor said, referencing his famous “Pulp Fiction” character. “Maybe they’ll cross paths. They’re out there -- Jules is looking for whatever and Nick Fury is off trying to find out what the hell happened to S.H.I.E.L.D. and how these people infiltrated it in that particular way. Maybe they’ll cross over. I’ll do Jules and Nick Fury in one movie together. I’ll be my own ‘Orphan Black.’”

While the 66-year-old actor was joking about a crossover, his enthusiasm for playing Fury clearly hasn’t faltered since his first appearance in the post-credit sequence of “Iron Man” in 2008. In a different interview with IGN, he revealed that he has only two movies left on his contract with Marvel Studios but would be willing to extend it.

Jackson is now starring in “Kingsman: The Secret Service.” “Avengers: Age of Ultron” is scheduled to hit theaters May 1.

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