Zoe Saldana Did Not Have A Good ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Experience
Zoe Saldana will be a Disney Legend one day. The actress has been a part of the top three highest-grossing movies of all time and has starred in two of Disney’s biggest franchises. Like Robert Downey Jr. before her, it is only a matter of time before Saldana gets the recognition she deserves.
Although best known for her role as Gamora in the MCU and Neytiri in James Cameron’s Avatar franchise, Saldana actually began her Disney career in a different tentpole franchise- Pirates of the Caribbean.
Portraying a Pirate
In Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Saldana portrayed Anamaria, a pirate from whom Jack Sparrow stole a ship. Eventually, Anamaria joins the Black Pearl’s crew and helps rescue Jack from hanging at the end of the film.
While Saldana’s character was a favorite among fans, the actress has previously stated that she “walked away not having a good experience”.
Jerry Bruckheimer Apologizes
In a recent interview with BBC Radio 1, Saldana explained that her turn in Pirates of the Caribbean was one of the low points of her career. She also revealed that Jerry Bruckheimer called and apologized.
“I really had a not-so-good experience because of just the poor management at that time. And Jerry Bruckheimer knows this, we spoke about it eventually. I think he read somewhere where I had expressed my discomfort and disappointment, and years later he apologized, which felt really quite honorable actually, I have to say,” she said.
Spielberg Came Calling
Following her Pirates of the Caribbean experience, Saldana was determined to only work out of New York. Then, Steven Spielberg came calling.
“But, from that experience, I was like ‘I’m never going to do this again. I’m just going to stay in New York and work out of New York and that’s it. And then I sent a tape and Steven Spielberg saw it, and cast me from my various notes and tapes that he kept asking me to do from New York and then I met him, and I had also worked with Diego Luna and Tom Hanks and it was just, it was a dream come true.”
In the end, Saldana solidified herself as one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars. Luckily, her bad experience didn’t preclude the actress from starring in other Disney films. If she had, we would have been robbed of some of the great performances in movie history.
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