Why Nick Fury Had To Lose His Eye That Way In Captain Marvel

The directors of Captain Marvel have revealed why Nick Fury had to lose his eye the way he did.

The '90s-set film saw MCU fans finally learn the truth of how the SHIELD agent (played by Samuel L Jackson) came to wear his iconic eyepatch, as his eye was scratched out by the unpredictable cat Flerken Goose.

And, speaking to Digital Spy, directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck revealed how they went about deciding that particular scene after a decade of mystery.

Related: How did Nick Fury lose his eye in the MCU?

"We went through several eye stories, and then landed on that one and we definitely ran it by the Marvel crew before filming it," said Anna.

"You have this idea of what must have happened to Nick Fury for his eye to have been lost. Nick wants it to be this big battle or some crazy story, and the fact that it was just basically a cat scratch is, you know, unexpected and fun and playful.

"Of course he would never tell anybody the truth about that."

Related: Spider-Man: Far From Home's Samuel L Jackson says 'heads are gonna roll' after spotting big error

Ryan added: "That's a big deal in the history of Marvel, Kevin Feige is going to be part of that discussion, for sure. There were tons of ideas, none of which were as exciting as the Flerken making that happen.

"I think it's fun that for decades Fury goes around making it feel like it was a more serious event that happened than it actually was."

We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.

Sorry Nick – although it *is* a Mother Flerken good story.

Jackson can currently be seen reprising his Nick Fury role in Spider-Man: Far From Home, out now in cinemas.

Captain Marvel lands on DVD, Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD on July 15.

Disney+ Watch the MCU on Disney+

$10 at Disney+

Marvel Ms Marvel Funko Pop! Vinyl

£15 at Pop In A Box

Marvel Studios: The Infinity Saga - Collector's Edition [Blu-ray, region-free]

$1,000 at Amazon

Marvel Studios Captain Marvel (2019)

£3 at Amazon

Marvel Studios Avengers: Endgame [2019]

£3 at Amazon

Funko Pop! SDCC 2019 EXC - Captain Marvel: Minn-Erva Pop! Vinyl Figure

Now 25% Off£15 at Pop In A Box

Marvel's Captain Marvel: The Art of the Movie

Now 66% Off£16 at Amazon

Hollywood Records Captain Marvel (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Pinar Toprak

£13 at Amazon

Marvel Captain Marvel Volume 1 by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Now 71% Off£5 at Amazon

Funko Pop! Captain Marvel Neon Suit Pop! Vinyl Figure

£15 at Pop In A Box

Funko Pop! Captain Marvel: Goose Flerken Pop! Vinyl Figure

£12 at Pop In A Box

Want up-to-the-minute entertainment news and features? Just hit 'Like' on our Digital Spy Facebook page and 'Follow' on our @digitalspy Instagram and Twitter account.

Louise McCreeshLouise McCreesh is a freelance news writer at Digital Spy.Ian Sandwell

Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.