Zoe Saldana biography, husband, net worth, ethnicity, kids, age 2025

Biography of Zoe Saldana

Zoe Saldana is an American actress of Puerto Rican descent, best known for starring in blockbusters like "Avatar," "Star Trek," and "Guardians of the Galaxy." She's also a trained dancer and successful model. Net worth: $35 million.

The full actress' name is Zoe Yadira Saldaña Nazario

Childhood

Zoe was born in the family of Asalia Nazario, a Puerto Rican, and Aridio Saldana, a Dominican. The actress also has Latvian, Irish, Jamaican, and Indian heritage. Zoe was born in Passaic, New Jersey, and she spent her early years in the diverse New York borough of Queens. Like her sisters Cisely and Mariel, Zoe was raised bilingual, speaking both English and Spanish.

When Zoe was 10 years old, her father died in a car crash. Unable to raise three children alone in expensive New York City, her mother moved the girls to live with their paternal grandparents in the Dominican Republic.

The actress Zoe Saldana in her childhood and adolescence

Zoe enrolled in the ECOS Espacio Dance School in the Dominican Republic. She studied various dance forms but called ballet her first love.

The Beginning of Acting Career

In 1995, Zoe's family returned to New York, where she began pursuing acting. She worked as a cashier at Burger King while performing with the Faces theater group in Brooklyn. Their theater company primarily performed for teenagers, tackling relevant issues like drug abuse and coming-of-age struggles.

At the same time, she became a part of the New York Youth Theater. While performing in the musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," Zoe caught the attention of a talent agent. Her theater background and ballet training landed her first film role as ballerina Eva in "Center Stage" (2000), a behind-the-scenes look at the world of classical and contemporary ballet.

The first role of Zoe Saldana in the movie («Center Stage», 2000)

In 2002, Saldana appeared in "Crossroads," starring alongside pop sensation Britney Spears.

Interview with Zoe Saldana (2003)

Zoe gained widespread recognition after the blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," starring alongside Johnny Depp's iconic Captain Sparrow. Saldana played Anamaria, a fierce female pirate and Sparrow's former lover, winning over audiences worldwide.

The scene from the movie «Pirates of the Caribbean»

Throughout the 2000s, she appeared in "The Terminal" with Tom Hanks, the adventure film "Haven" with Orlando Bloom, action thriller "Vantage Point," comedy "Guess Who" with Ashton Kutcher, and had small roles in the crime series "Law & Order."

The photoshoots of Zoe Saldana for the movie «Colombiana»

The 2011 thriller "Colombiana" became a real showcase for Saldana's talents. She played an assassin seeking revenge against the crime boss who killed her parents.

The Peak

In 2009, Zoe Saldana landed significant roles in two major blockbusters released back-to-back: «Star Trek» (the first part of the remake of the franchise) and «Avatar».

Zoe Saldana without makeup and «fully armed»

In the first film, she played Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, a crew member aboard the starship Enterprise. The cast also included Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Anton Yelchin, and Simon Pegg.

Her second major project was James Cameron's sci-fi epic Avatar, which became the most expensive film ever made at the time. The story follows wheelchair-bound Marine Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), who gets the chance to join a military experiment: becoming an "avatar" to infiltrate the distant planet Pandora, where he must gain the trust of the indigenous Na'vi people to help extract their valuable resources. Saldana played Princess Neytiri, who falls in love with the outsider.

Neytiri acted in «Avatar»

Saldana's character was brought to life using cutting-edge computer graphics and the then-revolutionary Motion Capture technology: sensors tracked every subtle movement and facial expression, translating them into digital form. She had to embody the agile and powerful Neytiri. For months, Saldana trained intensively at the gym, learned horseback riding and archery, and studied martial arts.

Her next major breakthrough came as the green-skinned Gamora in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy (2014). Interestingly, Saldana had never read comics before landing the role. Growing up in a very feminine environment, her interests lay elsewhere.

However, director James Gunn's enthusiasm ("Zoe, this is incredible!") and the compelling script convinced her to take the role.

«Guardians of the Galaxy»: Zoe Saldana transformation into Gamora

Once again, filming proved challenging. Each day meant a 5 AM start and five hours in the makeup chair, transforming her skin into Gamora's distinctive bright green.

The unlikely team of Gamora, Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), a talking raccoon, and a sentient tree captivated audiences, leading to the 2017 sequel Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The cast also reunited for Avengers: Infinity War (2018).

Between the two Marvel films, Saldana took on a dramatic role in Ben Affleck's Live by Night (2016). The crime drama, based on a novel, also featured Sienna Miller alongside Affleck.

Zoe as a Model

In 2010, Zoe Saldana starred in the advertisement of Calvin Klein Envy Underwear.

Zoe Saldana in Calvin Klein ad

She later signed with cosmetics giant Avon and collaborated with her sisters on a Gap campaign.

Saldana sisters in the Gap advertisement

The glamorous actress could be seen on the pages of Elle, Vanity Fair, GQ, Essence, Nylon, and InStyle.

Personal Life of Zoe Saldana

In summer 2010, Us Weekly broke the news of Zoe's engagement to her longtime boyfriend, the president of My Fashion Database Company and part-time actor Keith Britton. However, the couple called it quits in November 2011 after 11 years together.

Zoe Saldana and Keith Britton had been dating for 11 years

Zoe's next boyfriend was Italian artist Marco Perego. In July 2013 they secretly married in London, and two years later, the couple went public with their marriage. There was plenty of buzz because Zoe's husband, in a reversal of tradition, took her surname upon marriage.

Zoe Saldana's husband is the artist Marco Perego

In 2014, twins Cy and Bowie were born. The actress has repeatedly said she doesn't like posting photos of her children on Instagram, because it could hurt their dignity in the future. Despite this, she shared a photo of family walks on Instagram in spring 2015.

The children of Zoe Saldana: twins Bowie and Cy

In summer 2016, Zoe opened up about her autoimmune disease, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, or chronic inflammation of the thyroid gland.

Zoe Saldana Now

In spring 2019, the new "Avengers" film premiered, with Zoe once again appearing as Gamora. In the same year, the actress voiced the character in the cartoon "Missing Link". Zoe Saldana has signed a contract with Cameron Studio to reprise her role as Neytiri in three more "Avatar" films. The 2nd and 3rd films are slated for release in 2021 and 2023.

Zoe Saldana: latest news and articles

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Doris Brewer

Zoe played cool in Colombiana, I don`t know why they didn`t mention it here. She is so fragile and brave at the same time in this movie.

2021-04-21 23:46:02
Ashley Wright

Did she play in Avatar?? Seriously?? I even didn`t know but I like this actress very much.

2021-04-11 15:05:52
Sarah Kennedy

I remember her in the movie `Guess Who`. It`s a very romantic movie and this kind of roles fits good on her but in action movies, she also looks well.

2021-04-10 19:38:19
Ella Long

She had a very good role in `The Words`, she played amazing. I recommend to watch everybody if you still didn`t see this one.

2021-03-30 23:22:30
Lori Smith

I like very much Zoe. Normally she is playing secondary roles but anyway she is always harmonically.

2021-03-02 16:36:04

Photos: Zoe Saldana