Confirmed: Zoe Saldana Cast As Uhura In JJ Abrams Star Trek

Zoe Saldana (The Terminal, Guess Who, and James Cameron's Avatar) has been cast as Uhura in JJ Abrams' Star Trek. Played by Nichelle Nichols in the original series, Uhura is from the United States of Africa and speaks Swahili (her name means "Freedom"). She remained part of the USS Enterprise bridge crew throughout the series and movie spin-off, and later rose to the rank of commander. I don't off the top of my head recall Zoe from her previous efforts, but her photo looks much like I would expect a young Uhura to look like. If I remember correctly, didn't Zoe play a Trekkie in Steven Speilberg's The Terminal? Update: Our new friends at TrekMovie have posted a clip of the aforementioned Terminal Trekkie scene.

Star Trek is set to hit theaters on December 25th 2008.

Source: Variety