Zoe Saldaña Opens Up About Avatar 3's Most Challenging Scene
The actress reveals how her personal life as a mother made filming certain emotional scenes in Avatar: Fire and Ash particularly difficult to handle.
Zoe Saldaña has become synonymous with blockbuster franchises, bringing dedication and depth to every role she takes on. As she prepares to return as Neytiri in James Cameron's upcoming Avatar: Fire and Ash, the actress has opened up about the personal challenges she faced while filming the highly anticipated sequel.
Personal Struggles Behind the Scenes
During a recent interview with DiscussingFilms, Saldaña revealed the emotional toll of balancing her expanding family with her demanding role. The actress explained how difficult it was to portray a grieving mother while being away from her own children at home.
"On a personal level, I was expanding my family. So, to get to leave my babies at home and come to work and play a woman who had just buried one of her children, it was hard," she shared when asked about the darker aspects of her character in the latest sci-fi installment.
The mother of three sons - Cy, Bowie, and Zen, whom she shares with husband and artist Marco Perego - found herself in the challenging position of portraying loss while experiencing the joy of her growing family.
Star-Studded Cast Returns
Saldaña will once again appear alongside Sam Worthington, who returns as Jake Sully, in Avatar: Fire and Ash. The cast also features Sigourney Weaver reprising her role as Kiri, along with other franchise veterans including Stephen Lang, Kate Winslet, Oona Chaplin, and David Thewlis.
The Avatar franchise has proven to be a massive success, with the original 2009 film earning $2.9 billion worldwide and its 2022 sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, bringing in $2.3 billion. Both films received strong critical reception, with the first earning a 7.9/10 on IMDb and 81% on Rotten Tomatoes, while the sequel scored 7.5/10 and 76% respectively.
Balancing Fame and Motherhood
Despite her glamorous career, Saldaña and her husband have made conscious efforts to keep their children away from the public spotlight. In a 2022 interview with InStyle, she discussed how her sons react to seeing her as Gamora from Guardians of the Galaxy.
"I see how he's trying to place me in his mind like, 'OK, you're mama, but you're also Gamora...They're going to watch these movies, and it's going to be a part of what they like and what excites them. And the fact that that gives me street cred with my kids, it's fun, it's great," she explained.
The actress has been candid about the sacrifices required to pursue her dreams while raising children. In 2023, she shared a social media post featuring her sons visiting her on a Marvel set while she was in full Gamora makeup, acknowledging "all the moms out there making the ultimate sacrifice for their dreams."
Cameron's Technical Precision
James Cameron continues to push technological boundaries with his Avatar films, just as he did when the original introduced audiences to modern 3D cinema. For Avatar: Fire and Ash, the director has issued specific technical instructions to theater operators, including detailed projection settings and framing requirements to ensure optimal viewing experiences.
In a letter to theater technicians, Cameron expressed his excitement about delivering the film to audiences while emphasizing the importance of proper technical presentation. The director included a framing chart in the digital cinema package and requested that theaters follow his specified projection settings.
Avatar: Fire and Ash is scheduled for release on December 19, 2025, marking another chapter in Cameron's ambitious Pandora saga.