Zoe Saldaña Net Worth, Early Career, Philanthropy, Marriage, And More

The Dominican actress Zoe Saldaña has created a niche in Hollywood! In her career, she has played varied parts. She is unanimously called the ‘Queen of Sequels’ due to her roles in the sequels of popular franchises like ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy’, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’, and ‘Avatar’. The actress will end the year 2022 by reprising her role of Neytiri in one of the most awaited sequels ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’.

The ‘Terminal’ actress had a rough life during her childhood, but she fought all the odds. Zoe is an excellent dancer, specifically a ballet dancer. She learned the art when she was in the Dominican Republic which helped her to bag her debut role on celluloid in ‘Center Stage’ in 2000. Along with being an amazing actress on-screen, she has been active in charity work and has launched her entrepreneurial venture. Let’s get to know more about the actress, her achievements, her net worth, her married life, and more.

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Zoe Saldaña Net Worth

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Zoe Saldaña’s net worth is $35 million. She is one of the most bankable actresses in Hollywood. Thanks to her role as Neytiri in James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’, she became the second highest-grossing film actress in Hollywood after Scarlett Johansson. One of her most profitable sequels was ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy’ which grossed $772,776,600 worldwide cumulative.

Despite being such a phenomenal performer and commercially successful actress, Hollywood still discriminated against her. If people feel that pay parity is a myth, Saldaña was asking for child care, but the studio rejected her clause in the contract when it provided a private jet and lavish vanity vans to her male counterparts. In 2017, she launched a digital multimedia platform called BESE. The purpose was to give voice to the unheard Latin stories in the States. With her two sisters, she founded a production company named ‘Cinestar’ which produced series like ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ and the anime ‘My Hero’.

Early Career Of Zoe Saldaña

Zoë Yadira Saldaña Nazario aka Zoe Saldaña is a Dominican Republic native. She was born in Passaic, New Jersey in 1978. However, her family of five shifted to New York to the immigrant neighborhood of Jackson Heights. When she was nine years old, her father, Aridio Saldaña died in a car accident. Due to this unfortunate circumstance, she along with her two sisters, Cisley Saldaña Nazario and Mariel Saldaña Nazario, and her mother shifted to the Dominican Republic.

In her homeland, she learned various performing arts like ballet, jazz, and modern. Zoe loved doing ballet, but her physicality discouraged her from pursuing it further. She came back to New York for further studies. Zoe started her high school education at Newtown High School in Elmhurst. During her stay in New York, she started doing plays for many theater groups. At 17, she was a part of theater groups like Faces and the New York Theatre. It was during one of her stage performances, an agency spotted her.

In 1999, she starred in ‘Law & Order’, but in 2000, she literally took a center stage in her debut film ‘Center Stage’ starring Amanda Schull and Ethan Stiefel. The film was a commercial success that launched this new face. In 2003, she starred alongside Johnny Depp in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl’ as the smuggler Anamaria.

The film was the third highest-grossing film in the franchise. But, it was ‘The Terminal’ directed by Steven Spielberg that led to the tag ‘Queen of sequels’.

After the film, she was equipped with Star Trek knowledge courtesy of Steven, who was a geek. In 2009, she starred in the ‘Star Trek film Nyota Uhura. This started the trend of getting cast in the highest-grossing sci-fi films such as ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy’, ‘Avatar’, ‘Avengers: Infinity War’, and ‘Avengers: Endgame’.

Read More: Zoe Saldana Talks About Not Having A Good Experience Shooting ‘Pirates Of The Caribbean’

Philanthropic Work Done By Zoe Saldaña

The actress has been an avid contributor to society. In 2021, she won the Andrea Bocelli Humanitarian Award for her philanthropy. She is the ambassador for ‘Shot@Life’ which aids children to get access to vaccinations. Zoe believes in the upliftment and empowerment of women, so she extended her support to ‘The Step Up Network’. The organization provides resources and encourages women from underprivileged communities to get trained and learn to be leaders.

The ‘Live By Night’ also supports children and families, who need medical assistance via ‘Brave Beginnings’. Zoe is an advocate for Autism awareness and is a part of several organizations like ‘Actors for Autism’ and ‘Autism Speaks’. She also directed a short film titled ‘Kaylien’ starring Bradley Cooper to raise awareness about autism. She has been part of Haiti Relief Inc., and FINCA.

Brand Endorsements Of Zoe Saldaña

Post the success of ‘Avatar’, the actress has bagged many brand deals. Zoe joined hands with the German company Calvin Klein for their 2010 campaign Calvin Klein Envy. She also promoted Jay-Z’a fashion line Roca wear in 2010. In 2014, Zoe was the new spokesmodel for L’Oreal Paris along with Julianne Moore and Blake Lively. She partnered with Avon for their new fragrance line ‘Eternal Magic’ in 2010.

Personal Life

It was love at first sight for Zoe Saldaña! Before meeting her husband Marco Perego, an Italian artist, she was in a long-term relationship with Keith Britton for 11 years. She also dated Bradley Cooper. But, it was in 2013, that she found the love of her life in Marco. During an interview with USA Today, she chronicled their love at first sight story. But, everything was under wraps until both were seen indulging in PDA at the premiere of ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’. The two had a private wedding in 2013. They are blessed with three boys—twins Bowie Ezio and Cy Aridio and Zen Anton.

House

In 2016, Saldaña purchased a lavish abode for $8.7 million in the serene Hidden Valley Hills area in Beverly Hills. The six-bedroom house is spread around a 6,332 square feet area. The white-washed, colonial area house has marble in the kitchen and flooring of dark wood.

Read More: “We’ll Finish It Regardless”: James Cameron On The Future Of ‘Avatar’ Sequels