Zoe Saldana was recently honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The actress has appeared in many major blockbusters, such as Avatar, two Guardians of the Galaxy films, as well as recently shining as a major player in Avengers: Infinity War and three Star Trek films.
The ceremony was attended by many friends, family members and colleagues of Saldana, including fellow Guardians of the Galaxy stars Karen Gillan and Pom Klementieff, as well as Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige. Producer/director James Cameron also attended, noting that they were taking a break from shooting the Avatar sequels for the event. He spoke of Saldana's inspirational and renowned sci-fi roles:
Zoe pretty much owns outer space. I may be king of the world, but she is queen of the universe. Her iconic characters – Uhura, Neytiri, Gamora – are role models for young women. These are women of courage and integrity, women who are unbound and authentic, women who stand for something.
Accepting the honor, Saldana spoke of her journey, explaining that you need to persevere despite failure and “build from somewhere, step by step":
Having a dream is just step one. Step two: sleeves up, hard work, persistence, passion, perseverance. Fail often and fail forward. If at first you don’t succeed, you dust yourself off and you try again. I learned to love what I do and do what I love and that has been my mantra. From Burger King commercials, to Law and Order episodic, to a ballet movie. I got to be a pirate, an INS officer, a xenolinguist on the Enterprise. I got to be an alien warrior – well, multiple alien warriors.
She recalled the first time she ever saw the Walk of Fame and how serendipitous earthquake helped push her to pursue her dreams.
I’m a first-generation Latino and part of my culture is super superstitious. We rely on signs. If I would have followed in the footsteps of my forefathers and foremothers, I think I would have taken that as a sign and become a dentist or a psychologist. But thank God I decided to ignore it and pursue my dreams of becoming an actress.
What do you think about Saldana receiving a star? Which role of hers is your favourite?
You can check out a video of the entire ceremony below:
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