Frank Grillo Says He Was Never 'Almost Fired' From Marvel, Was Just Joking

Frank Grillo is clarifying his claim about his relationship with Marvel ... with the actor telling us he was not almost axed from the superhero studio.

ICYMI ... Grillo, who is best known for playing Brock Rumlow AKA Crossbones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, said in a recent interview that he was nearly given the pink slip on 36 different occasions while working for the Disney-owned brand.

However, we caught up with the actor at LAX Airport and he made it clear his comments were taken far too literally ... defending he was just joking around about his big mouth.

He elaborates ... "One time I said something out of context and Marvel said, 'Please don't say anything.' But the idiot f***ing writer ran with that and everybody picked it up."

Watch the vid ... Grillo points the finger at the interviewer for the joke going viral ... calling the person a "moron."

As for the one-time reprimand from Marvel, FG made it clear that he isn't the first actor to get a warning from the studio.

He adds ... "All of us get in trouble for saying stuff, because we never know what we can say and what we can't say."

Although, some MCU stars have a worse reputation for spoiling than others. For instance, Tom Holland, who plays Spider-Man in the MCU, is notorious for accidentally spilling the beans. Benedict Cumberbatch even received praise after one press tour, as he skillfully stopped Holland from saying too much about "Avengers: Infinity War."

Similarly, Mark Ruffalo accidentally streamed a part of "Thor: Ragnarok" after he forgot to turn off his Instagram Live during the premiere. Ruffalo later quipped on "The Graham Norton Show" that Marvel "tried" to fire him over the slip-up.