In 1995, Samuel L Jackson’s agent begged him not to take a role. 30 years later, he calls it the greatest he ever played

In 1995, Samuel L Jackson’s representatives urged him not to take a role in Shane Black’s action thriller *The Long Kiss Goodnight*. Three decades later, Jackson says the film has a substantial cult following and identifies Mitch Henessey as the greatest role of his career, showing how a project once questioned by his team became especially meaningful to him.

Jackson was an Academy Award nominee after *Pulp Fiction* and was choosing from more prominent projects, including *A Time to Kill* and *Die Hard with a Vengeance*. Black was a highly paid screenwriter, and New Line Cinema reportedly paid $4 million for the script in 1994. The film was overlooked at the box office, but Jackson has praised its lasting appeal and the fit between Black’s dialogue and his performance.