Samuel L. Jackson's 'surprise' cameo as Nick Fury in the upcoming Iron Man movie has been cut, according to reports.

Jackson reportedly replaced Bruce Willis as the Marvel Comics cigar-chomping elite spy last June, and he was supposed to appear in character in Robert Downey Jr.'s new Iron Man film.

But Fury failed to materialize in early screenings of the new comic book adaptation, which hits cinemas next month.

Despite ongoing reports about the cameo, Jackson himself has been trying to play down the rumors.

In one TV interview in America last August, the Pulp Fiction star insisted he was not in the film - but he was awaiting a call-up to the cast.

He said, "Everybody keeps saying, 'Aren't you in Iron Man?' and I keep going, 'Look, the guy in the comic looks just like me and if they do cast it and they don't cast me, there's gonna be some problems,' so I'm looking forward to that."