Zoë Saldaña, 46, the American star known for her iconic roles in Avatar and Guardians of the Galaxy, has captivated audiences with a range of memorable characters, including her portrayal in Star Trek.
In our latest 60 Seconds, she discusses her latest project, the trans musical-drama Emilia Pérez, which earned her a share of the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival – along with co-stars Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz.
Here she opens up about managing anxiety, collaborating with director James Cameron, and raising what she affectionately calls her ‘dragons.’
And, she reveals why she doesn’t mind being recognised as ‘the blue lady’ – but she’s far from done yet.
How did you get the role of crusading lawyer Rita in Emilia Pérez?
In summer 2022, Jacques [Audiard, director] was like, ‘If this is important for you, you should get on a plane and come and meet me.’ I was in Grand Cayman vacationing.
I had just finished Guardians Of The Galaxy 3. I was exhausted, and I was with my family. And it’s not easy to travel from Grand Cayman all the way to Paris! I’m there rehearsing and I can’t get a read on this man. I don’t know if he likes me. I don’t know if I suck. We do a whole weekend of rehearsals and improvisation. Then I get back, three flights back to Grand Cayman, and I receive an email: ‘Jacques loved you. Everything is fine.’ I was like, ‘Oh my God!’
Are you a confident dancer? You do so much of it in the film…
I mean, I wouldn’t say confident, but I broke this body in for over a decade growing up, so it’s still muscle memory. But I’m older. It’s not like I’m 20 years old – you can’t just show me a routine, I just kick and I do it.
I need time, and I’m dyslexic, and I suffer from a lot of anxiety, so I needed a lot of hours to rehearse, but we did it, and then I just like throwing myself into work and allowing myself to be surprised with what I’m able to do. If someone like Jacques gives me that liberty, that privilege, that gift of ‘I believe in you’…I’m like, ‘F***! I just have to keep up.’
The film has a strong feminist message. As a mother of three boys, does that chime with your beliefs?
I’m raising dragons, I’m raising men, and I’m not giving up. I think also the next evolution… in addition to women being more in control, being world leaders, if we represent more peace, I think that would be beneficial for the world, but also very beneficial to raise our boys better, to give them exactly all the tools they need, to equip them for a life that is also very hard on them.
I never lose sight of how hard the world is on men. There’s a lot of physical freedom and there’s mental constraint.
Is it true you sometimes think of your characters as animals? If so, what’s your favourite?
I love wolves. I’m obsessed with wolves. I think we take more as a human species from wolves than lions.
If we really take from lions, then I really feel bad for men. For me, the lion is such a loser in the animal kingdom. He sleeps all day, steals from his women and eats his cubs.
What can you say about your time on the Avatar movies? This franchise has dominated your career.
I’m going to be 53 when I promote the last one. I got it when I was 27 – that’s a gift. I don’t touch Avatar. I don’t touch Jim [James Cameron, director].
The opportunity that Jim gave me to play Neytiri, to birth Neytiri with him, was an opportunity of a lifetime. And I’m here today because Avatar reached the world and people then saw me eventually. Oh, the blue lady!
Were you bothered that on screen your actual face didn’t appear in either Avatar or the Guardians Of The Galaxy movies?
It didn’t bother me for the first part of my career, because I’m an extremely shy person and art is my outlet. And I may seem extroverted and wear a nice dress or whatever, but I’m extremely insecure in my head most of the time, and I need art.
So Avatar and playing Gamora in Guardians gave me the ability to do something that was fun, catering my senses to a genre that I truly consume. I love science fiction. I love all kinds of fictional authors and things like that, so I was able to still have a normal life.
How do you feel being in big blockbusters?
For so long, I was a part of very big productions, and I just felt overlooked. I felt like I was getting a little lost in all of that. I’m always going to be grateful.
I’m always going to be loyal, especially to Jim, because I do respect him, and I look up to him. I love what he does. But I was feeling a little stuck and getting really sad. And then you’re 46 and you have three boys. And you go, ‘Is this it? Am I done?’ Because I’m not done. I have so much that I want to give. This opportunity with Emilia Pérez was medicine for my soul.
What do you do away from movies?
When I’m not making art, I’m consuming it. My husband [artist/producer Marco Perego] and I did a short movie at the Biennale this year. This is what we live for. When we’re not doing this, we’re consuming it. We’re watching it, we’re listening to it. We’re raising our boys in an artistic life – and I don’t know what else to do.