Ever since Samuel L. Jackson showed up in the MCU in Iron Man, his Nick Fury has sported the character's signature eye patch (except for Captain Marvel, which was a prequel). But recent images from the upcoming Secret Invasion Disney+ series show Fury sans his eyepatch. Why is that? Samuel L. Jackson has the answers.

(Warning: Light spoilers for Secret Invasion ahead) 

In Vanity Fair's exclusive (where you can see the images), which gave the most in-depth preview of the upcoming series, Jackson revealed why Nick Fury has ditched his eye patch. To understand, fans have to know that the recent events in the MCU have taken their toll on the man who formed the Avengers.  Fury's been off-earth for a bit and the deaths of the likes of Iron Man and Black Widow have left him “checked out.”

So how does that grief get Fury to ditch the patch? Did he decide to get himself healed (hey, there's technology for everything in these movies)? The answer is quite simple: “He just doesn't wear the patch. The patch is part of who the strong Nick Fury was,” said Jackson.

He continued, “It's part of his vulnerability now. You can look at it and see he's not this perfectly indestructible person. He doesn't feel like that guy.”

Hey — at least that answer isn't quite as much of a letdown as Captain Marvel's explanation as to why he needs the patch (that's up there with Han Solo receiving his name in Solo). Jokes aside, it's nice to see that an MCU series is taking on some heavier themes. Whether or not they actually double down on that and really tackle them is a different story. This is a good start, though.

Time will tell if Fury navigates through his grief and brings back his signature look, but at least we know why he isn't sporting it in the promotional images and it's not a massive continuity error on the part of the MCU.

Secret Invasion will premiere on June 21 on Disney+.