December 9, 2007
Zoë Saldaña (born Zoë Yadira Zaldaña Nazario on June 19, 1978) is an American actress.
Zoë Saldaña was born in New Jersey to immigrants from the Dominican Republic. Her first languages are Spanish and English. She was raised in Queens, New York. When Saldaña was nine, her father died in a car accident, and Saldaña's mother moved her and her sisters back to the Dominican Republic. While there, Saldaña enlisted in a ballet class and gained experience as a dancer, enlisting in one of the most prestigious dancing schools of that country, which benefited her during her later role in Center Stage. She returned to the USA after her sophomore year in high school and enrolled in the Faces Theater Program, an acting course. She also worked in Burger King as a cashier in the mid 90s. She is currently dating actor Keith Britton.
Saldaña was still a member of the program when she got her first screen experience on an episode of Law & Order that first aired October 13, 1999. She left the school after her major film debut in 2000's Center Stage, which she followed up in 2002 with appearances in the Britney Spears vehicle, Crossroads and the Nick Cannon-starring comedy, Drumline. She played the tough pirate lass Anamaria in the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, and has appeared subsequently in television shows like Law & Order and in a number of movies, including The Terminal and Guess Who. Saldaña has recently been cast in the role of Uhura in the upcoming Star Trek movie.
More pictures More WENN Pictures Portraits After Party Show Gift Lounge Cocktail Coverage Backstage Arrivals Red Carpet More Pics More Pics Pics
Hollywood Life magazine reports:
The brightest rising stars gathered in Hollywood last night for the Breakthrough of the Year Awards.
Scrubs star Donald Faison hosted the event at the Music Box at the Fonda on Hollywood Blvd. Donald, who dates Jessica Simpson’s former assistant Cacee Cobb, gave Simpson’s new man Tony Romo his seal of approval on the red carpet saying, “He’s a great guy.”
Josh Duhamel presented a Breakthrough Award to his Transformers co-star Megan Fox who looked scorchingly sexy in a Dolce & Gabbana corset dress. Also on hand were the Superbad boys, Jonah Hill and McLovin’ himself, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, who lamented that he wasn’t old enough to drink the special Cabo Wabo cocktail of the night named after his character.
Heroes Masi Oka revealed on the red carpet that his co-star Milo Ventimiglia was “the maestro” and advises him on everything from dealing with the press to picking up chicks.
