Zoe Saldana is an undisputed queen of sci-fi cinema. From Avatar to Star Trek, the Avengers: Endgame actress is all over the genre, and she’s returned to it yet again with Netflix’s new streaming blockbuster, The Adam Project. For this one, Saldana appears opposite Deadpool’s Ryan Reynolds as his badass love interest, Laura. If you squint a bit, it’s a role that shares some similarity with the green-skinned Gamora in the Guardians of the Galaxy films.
Saldana can definitely see a connection between the two franchises, anyway, albeit for a different reason. While speaking to Syfy.com to promote The Adam Project, which is based on a spec script originally written by screenwriter T.S. Nowlin, the 43-year-old star explained why she loves working on projects that come from original ideas. As she put it:
“I find it more rewarding [to act in movies based on original ideas] because it’s such a blank canvas, and you get to really pepper in the layers that you imagine for it. There’s something really fascinating about working with original content that makes me really look at the filmmaker with so much more reverence.”
And, while Guardians is obviously inspired by the Marvel comics, Saldana went on to compare director Shawn Levy’s original vision for Adam with James Gunn’s unique and innovative twist on the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“I like working on Guardians of the Galaxy because James Gunn still also manages to protect some of the innovation and makes it very nuanced,” Saldana added. “That was also lovely. But I like working on things that were conceived out of thin air.”
It’s good that Saldana enjoys making the Guardians movies as she’s actually shooting one right now. After much delay, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is finally in production. Gunn, Saldana and the rest of the cast have been offering us a few sneak peeks online, but otherwise everything about it is being kept under wraps, so we’re not too sure what the cosmic threequel has in store for us just yet. Gamora will obviously be back after her disappearing act at the end of Endgame, but don’t expect to see Saldana alongside the other Guardians in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Also featuring Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Garner, Catherine Keener, and Walker Scobell, The Adam Project — which is receiving warm reviews from critics — is streaming everywhere on Netflix now. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is scheduled to hit theaters in May 2023.