Zoe Saldaña is getting some serious buzz these days. Not only does she star in the new Netflix miniseries "From Scratch," but she's also returning to Pandora in the "Avatar" sequel, "Avatar: The Way of Water."
However, in a recent interview with InStyle, Saldaña revealed that she almost walked away from the acting world in 2003 altogether — and those two major projects, among many others, might not have ever happened.
Almost 20 years ago, she had a small role in the blockbuster, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl," and Saldaña shared that the experience almost put her out of showbiz forever.
"'Pirates' was just too big of a production," the 44-year-old said. "I just felt lost and not considered properly and overlooked. I remember thinking, ‘If this is Hollywood, then I hate it. I don’t want it. Take it, keep it.'"
But after getting advice from Steven Spielberg, who directed her in 2004's "The Terminal," Saldaña had a change of heart.
The director told her to be more choosy about the roles she signed on for, according to InStyle, and that guidance led her to pick movies like "Guardians of the Galaxy," "Star Trek" and, of course, "Avatar."
In 2009, when stepped into the role as Neytiri in “Avatar," her life changed — but Saldaña admits that she didn't see the film's major success coming.
“I had no idea ‘Avatar’ was going to have the impact that it did on such a global scale,” she said. “Those things are unimaginable.”
As the "Avatar" sequel nears its premiere on Dec. 16, the actor reflects on picking projects with her "head" and her "heart."
“I join projects because I believe in the people behind them. When they’re magical and thoughtful, thought-provoking, and collaborative, that’s what changes my life for the better,” she explained. “It gives me experiences that raise me, that help me grow, that make me feel good about people.”