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Zoë Saldana hosted the Hennessy Suite Spot in November 2006 in New York, her hometown. Saldana, who spent part of her childhood in the Dominican Republic, spoke at "Tribeca Talks: Adalantes Mujeres: Latina Women" during the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. Zoe Saldana, Argentina Cesse, Lubov Azria, and Zoe's mother, Asalia, attend the H.E.L.P. Malawi Fundraiser at B.C.B.G Max Azria in
New York, November 2008. Saldana attends a press conference in Seoul for her forthcoming film Star Trek: The Beginning, which opened May 8. Saldana arrives at the Film Independent's Spirit Awards in Santa Monica in 2008. |
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She first pirouetted onto the big screen in the 2000 ballet flick Center Stage, a cult favorite among the dance set, and the classically trained Zoë Saldana is still most recognized for her portrayal of feisty Eva Rodriguez. But with four films out this year, including the highly anticipated Star Trek prequel and The Skeptic, a thriller with Tim Daly and Tom Arnold (both slated for May release), the indefatigable actress may well be a household name before the summer is out. The 31-year-old took a break from the set of her latest project, Death at a Funeral, to discuss life on the S.S. Enterprise, as well as more-earthly matters: her childhood, split between Queens, New York, and the Dominican Republic; her close-knit family; and thriving as a self-described "underdog" in Hollywood.
You just started filming Death at a Funeral with James Marsden and Chris Rock. What can you tell us about that project?
It's a remake of an English comedy [by Frank Oz] that came out, I think it was two years ago. Chris Rock saw it and he really, really liked it, and he pitched it to Screen Gems and they fell in love with the project. They bought it, and they wanted to make an American version of it.
You might be recognized for your appearances as Anamaria in Pirates of the Caribbean or as Dolores Torres in The Terminal. Did you have a classic "big break" moment?
In terms of a film that I'm most recognized for by people, it's Center Stage, and that was the very first film I ever did.
You grew up in Queens, and then moved with your family to the Dominican Republic. What was that like?
Absolute culture shock, because growing up in New York, you're used to a certain lifestyle, where it's so diverse and there are so many religions and so many shades of people and so many languages being spoken, like, at every doorstep. My sisters and I, we kind of felt like we were running on a train that was going really, really fast, and all of a sudden we get off the train and we're walking. We always acknowledged that we were living in a place where our parents were from, and we always had a lot of respect for that. But it was hard.
It seems like after you live in New York it really is hard to live anywhere else. How has living in the Dominican Republic influenced you going forward?
Once you set up your home somewhere, and then you have to get up and move again, it's a little disheartening at that time. But once you're older and you're able to kind of use that and use all those tools, it just gives you a consciousness of the world, you know?
What do your mom and your family think of your success?
They couldn't be prouder. My mom is proud of everything that we do. My older sister is a nurse; my younger sister works in a photography studio. My mom has always been that kind of mom, that if we wanted to be anything, she was going to do whatever was in her capacity to help us and to encourage us because she ultimately wanted us always to be happy. But to love to work, that was always her primary instilment in us. She is very proud.
Tell me about your classical dance training—you did seven years at ECOS Espacio de Danza Dance Academy in the Dominican Republic. Do you find that your dance background has any effect on your acting?
Oh my God, absolutely. I didn't go to Juilliard or any of those artsy high schools that are in New York, so ballet was my only artistic training. It definitely did help, because I think when actors approach a character it's not only the mental form of the character that you're embodying, it's also the physical traits. So being in tune with my body because of my training in dance has definitely helped me.
You've also acted on the stage—in what? Any desire to return to the theater?
I would love, love that. I did a couple of plays, like I did The Wiz, and then I did Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. I was also in a theater company in Brooklyn called FACES, and we toured all around the country and we also went to Europe, and we would just do scenes that were written by kids.
So, you want to be on Broadway someday?
I would love to. I would absolutely love to do Broadway. I love the stage. I love seeing plays and dances and symphonies and operas. I grew up watching that, so there's something very warm every time I go to a theater and I see something being presented. It's a really good sensation.
What's it been like to work with some of the most prolific directors in Hollywood?
I think I've definitely been spoiled in this business. I'm not saying it's been easy, because nothing that's easy is ever appreciated. I've worked really hard to be where I am. But working with directors like Steven Spielberg and James Cameron and J. J. Abrams and Neil LaBute . . . you can very well tell the difference when you work with an amazingly experienced director. [They] have respect for what actors do, and they have this consciousness of keeping actors in a safe environment in order for us to make them happy telling their stories.
But at the same time, I also love working with young directors that are amazing writers. I did a film called Haven, and it was directed and written by this young guy, Frank E. Flowers, and he is Caribbean. Now I'm proud to say he's one of my best, bestest friends. So I also love taking risks with new directors, because I consider myself, and will forever consider myself, an underdog. It's a great thing when someone takes a risk to hire me for a project, so I definitely feel that it is my duty to return the favor.
Abrams directed you as Uhura in the new Star Trek film, with Eric Bana and Winona Ryder. Is it true that before you were considered for the part, you'd never seen the series?
No, I had never seen the series, but my mom used to watch it when she was a little girl. She used to watch it with her grandmother, so I was aware of it, but I grew up in the Star Wars generation. And that was what I had seen and known like the back of my hand.
How did you prepare for the role? Did you start watching the old series, or did you not want to mirror it that closely?
I did not watch the show at all. It was a lot of conversations. I met Nichelle Nichols. [Nichols was lauded for her portrayal of Uhura, the first African-American female character to have a central role on the small screen.] I also trained with an acting coach, and she helped me devour the script and look into myself and see what I would add to the character, and also what this character needed. J. J. was very adamant that we add our take, and our approach was highly considered for our characters, because it is the beginning [of the series].
What would you say that you look for in a role?
I definitely like to look for the flaws. The reality is that we are playing characters, most of the time, that are human—that are meant to be like you, like myself, that have amazing traits but at the same time have weaknesses. I feel like that's the best way to know someone. Maybe that's also the kind of person that I am. I really like when people show me who they really, really are, because only then can I start to know them.
Do you have a character that has been the most fun for you to play?
Uhura, because she's so funky and she's such a strong woman, and she gets to hold her own in a cabin full of men. She has so much command and so much authority, and she's so very well respected. But also, I did a film with James Cameron that's coming out at the end of the year called Avatar. It was the most challenging role I've ever had to play up until now in my career, because it demanded a lot of physical attention from me. I trained for seven months, and I had to learn an invented, completely unspoken language. That was so much fun, because I love challenges and I love being pushed to the limit. I've never been in such great shape.
You said that you inherited your love of fashion from your grandmother, who worked in the textile business. How would you describe your style?
Pretty nomadic and very eclectic. I love when designers make an effort, and not only do they play with color, they play with fabric. They are artists fundamentally, so I love when they use their entire surroundings and they incorporate that into something. I love how Ralph Lauren is so attentive to who wears the brand, who's actually dressing in Ralph Lauren. He caters to all levels, all kinds of people. There's just something very American about wearing a beautiful thoroughbred suit from Ralph Lauren. You just feel so all-American. It's a great thing.
What do you do in your spare time?
I drink wine; I read. The book that I'm so in love with that I read last year is The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Do you know Junot Díaz? Such an amazing writer. And I love to travel and just be with people who I love. That's one thing that I really love to do, and I love being with my dog.
What kind of dog do you have?
A rescue; his name is Calvin. He's just the cutest little sucker, I'm telling you. He's going to be two this summer. He looks like a Dalmatian, but we know he has some pit bull in him. He's just like a little mutt; he reminds me of a native New Yorker.
Do you have a favorite trip you've taken, or a favorite place you like to travel?
I love going back to the Dominican Republic, and being with family. But also relaxing, staying in a little house right by the beach, and eating fried fish, and being with local people. I recently traveled to Asia, and I had never been to Korea and Japan. I completely fell in love with the culture and the food and the people. There's just something really beautiful about meeting people from different places and knowing how they are, and why they speak the way they speak, and why they handle themselves the way they do.
What do you think you would do if you weren't acting?
I love animals, and I always say that I would be doing something related to animals, either own a farm or work on a ranch or be an animal doctor. I also love children. I'm not a mother yet, but I live vicariously through my sister, who's a mom, and my own mother, and my friends who are parents. . . . You're given a gift, and if you mishandle that gift you can alter the state and the destiny of this child who's going to eventually grow up and become an adult. I see how precious that is, and I feel that we should just dedicate more time to that as a society, as a government, as a country, as a global nation.
Do you have any favorite causes that you like to contribute to, or are involved with?
My mother and I, and my sisters, have a couple of organizations that we deal with and we work with from the Dominican Republic. I love every time I have some free time, going to schools, speaking to children, especially in neighborhoods that are a bit challenging to grow up in. When we force ourselves to step outside of our boxes and our comfort zones, only then are we reminded that we are just so small in this world and our mission and our meaning can be much bigger than just being in a magazine or walking the red carpet.
Jennifer Dixon is a staffer at Harper's Bazaar in New York. She has written for Elle Decor, Money, Self, WebMD, O, The Oprah Magazine, and O at Home, among other publications.
Photography credits:
- Johnny Nunez/WireImage
- Amy Sussman/Getty Images For TFF
- Clint Spaulding/PatrickMcMullan.com
- Hee Chul Kim/WireImage
- Entertainment Press
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