Zoe Saldaña Has One Condition To Return To The Sci-Fi Genre

It's a pretty impressive feat for an actor to be able say that they've contributed to three of the biggest movies in box-office history, but it's a claim that has certainly come at a cost for Zoe Saldaña. The star of "Lioness" and Netflix's "Emilia Pérez" was recently asked about her lucky streak stint in franchise films that saw her as Neytiri in James Cameron's "Avatar" movies as well as Gamora in the "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies along with "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Avengers: Endgame." When asked if she'd ever go back to those kinds of roles, the former Guardian gave one stipulation on returning to that kind of world.

"I can't ever say that I won't ever go to space," Saldaña told Vanity Fair, having also played Uhura in the rebooted "Star Trek" franchise. "I love being in space. I would like to just be a human in space. I don't see myself going through the three to four hours every morning of makeup." The lengthy process of transforming into a non-human character has certainly been a test for some stars, with Jim Carrey reportedly becoming so frustrated with the process when he played "The Grinch" that a brilliant make-up artist resorted to therapy after filming. Thankfully, there's been no reports of Saldaña struggling to that degree, but the star's concerns about how the process could have potentially impacted her health are understandable.

While Neytiri might only demand a few dots for Saldaña to wear (which she'll be doing for "Avatar: Fire and Ash" when a creepy new Na'vi clan is introduced), playing Gamora required a lengthy sit down and occasional standing up to become the daughter of Thanos. Saldaña's appearances in James Gunn's Marvel trilogy and the two "Avengers" epic instalments that followed weren't quick jobs and meant a lot of time going green for the gig. "I'm so concerned about just the chemicals and stuff that you're putting into your system for long periods of time, because we shoot these films in a period of five months," Saldaña said. "But I love science fiction."

As it stands, Gamora and the rest of the original Guardians aren't set for a return to the MCU any time soon, given that Gunn is deep in building the new DC Universe. That being said, there might be a chance that Gamora could return given Saldaña's strong connection to the character she played for 9 years and five films. In 2022, she told Variety, "I miss Gamora, but I don't miss 3:30 a.m. calls and five-hour makeup sessions and trips to the dermatologist afterwards." See, kids? That's what happens when you let a beloved character really get under your skin.