Zoe Saldana is no stranger to the comparisons that often haunt many Hollywood stars. Actors and actresses are often distinguished based on the genre they’re known for or the type of career they’ve had. Critics are often too quick to point out similarities between different talents and their on-screen portrayals.
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This tendency restricts individuality and reduces one’s acting skills to pointless generalizations. To outperform or at least mirror the person to whom one is being compared might occasionally prove to be a tedious endeavor. When people started pointing out the resemblance between Saldana’s and Angelina Jolie’s filmographies, the former found such comparisons to be intimidating.
Zoe Saldana’s Fascination For Action-Oriented Films
Much like superstar Angelina Jolie, Zoe Saldana has starred in cinematic pursuits that have required her to undertake high-octane female-led action sequences. Endeavors like Avatar, Guardians of the Galaxy, Colombiana, The Losers, etc., have displayed to the audiences and critics the actress’ capabilities when it comes to handling action-oriented premises. To prepare for such undertakings, Saldana had to go through intense and rigorous training. On several occasions, the talent also admitted to having executed her own stunts as much as she could.
Talking to Esquire, Saldana once revealed where this “itch” for the genre came from:
“I have the itch lately. I don’t know if it is after ‘Avatar’ or ‘Star Trek’ or because I’ve just finished an action film called ‘The Losers’, in which I did almost all my own stunts. I think it’s so empowering and sexy.”
In the Sylvain White-helmed action film, The Losers, Zoe Saldana stars alongside notable Hollywood personalities, such as Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Idris Elba, and Chris Evans. The 2010 pursuit had a budget of $25 million, against which it amassed $29.9 million at the box office. The release of this film and 2011’s Colombiana marked a time when the comparisons between Jolie and Saldana initially began to surface.
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What is interesting to note is that in the same Esquire interview, the world witnessed the MCU alum praising the Maleficent actress for her on-screen agility and impeccable character embodiment of strong fictional women:
“I love actresses like Angelina [Jolie] and Jessica [Biel]. They’re very agile, they incorporate their bodies with their characters and they pick women who are very strong. I really dig that.”
Despite Saldana’s outspoken admiration for the Mr. & Mrs. Smith star and her commitment to action sequences, the comparisons drawn between the two started to eventually bother the Star Trek alum. The mere thought of it began to terrify her.
Being Compared To Angelina Jolie Felt Scary To Zoe Saldana
Being hailed as the “New Angelina Jolie” did not sit right with the Guardians of the Galaxy alum. Although Saldana has been quite vocal about her appreciation and respect for Jolie, she did find the thought of getting compared to the latter rather scary. And understandably so. Incessant comparisons can often give rise to unnecessary competition or the pressure of upholding a particular expectation/standard.
Following is what the actress remarked to FOX411’s Pop Tarts column in light of such remarks:
“If I think about it in that fashion then yes [It’s scary,] I wouldn’t want to think about it in that way.”
However, Zoe Saldana also emphasized the efforts of the female actresses who came before her and undertook difficult cinematic journeys, which ultimately inspired her and motivated her to take on similarly demanding on-screen roles:
“But I have been inspired by amazing actresses that have taken amazing risks and opened amazing doors, and I am a product of that and I am honored to be included in a group of women that have defied their own gravity. Besides playing amazing character roles they also have an amazing agility to do action.”
It is with much grace that the MCU talent handled the topic. Despite being a target of such unnecessary remarks, Saldana did not once try to prove her superiority. We may take a cue from her statements and recognize the potential and talent Hollywood actresses have without discounting who they are as individuals.
The Losers starring Zoe Saldana is available on Prime Video via buying/renting.
Source: Contact Music
