section_path: Career/2009–2019: Avatar, Star Trek films, and Marvel's Infinity Saga
section_name: 2009–2019: Avatar, Star Trek films, and Marvel's Infinity Saga
paragraph_text: 2009–2019: Avatar, Star Trek films, and Marvel's Infinity Saga
  
  Saldaña appeared in two roles in 2009 that raised her profile considerably. She played Nyota Uhura in Star Trek. The film's director J. J. Abrams asked Saldaña to play the role because he enjoyed her work. She met with Nichelle Nichols to understand the creation of Uhura's background and name of the character. Saldaña's mother was a Star Trek fan, and left her voice-mails during filming, advising on the role. Steven Spielberg had taught her the Vulcan salute five years earlier while he directed her in The Terminal. Star Trek (2009) was a box-office success earning $385.7 million.
  
  Saldaña's second high-profile film in 2009 was Avatar, where she portrayed the indigenous hunter Neytiri. Avatar was well received by critics, with an approval rating of 83% on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. It grossed $2.7 billion worldwide to become the highest-grossing film of all time, as well as specifically in the United States and Canada. It became the first film to gross more than $2 billion worldwide.
  
  The film was nominated for ten Saturn Awards, and won all ten at the 36th Saturn Awards ceremony. Saldaña's Saturn Award for Best Actress win marked a rare occurrence for an all- CG character.
  
  In 2010, Saldaña performed in The Losers as Aisha al-Fadhil, a native Bolivian woman. For the role, she was required to gain weight in order to carry weapons for eight hours a day. In 2010, she appeared in Takers, Death at a Funeral, and Burning Palms. Her television ad for Calvin Klein 's "Envy" line debuted in 2010. In 2011, Saldaña starred in the romantic comedy The Heart Specialist, and portrayed assassin Cataleya Restrepo in the crime drama Colombiana. Although the latter film earned negative reviews from critics, Saldaña's performance was praised.
  
  In 2012, she appeared in the romantic drama The Words, earning negative reviews from critics and little success at the box-office.
  
  In 2013, Saldaña reprised her role as Uhura in Star Trek Into Darkness, the sequel to the Star Trek re-boot. Like the previous film, it was a box-office success, ending its North American theater run with a box office total of $228,778,661, placing it as the eleventh-highest-grossing film of 2013. It earned $467,365,246 worldwide, ranking it in 14th place for 2013, and making it the highest-grossing film of the franchise. Saldaña voiced her character in the 2013 release of the Star Trek video game.
  
  In 2014, Saldaña played Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy. Saldaña portrayed the character with make-up rather than computer generated imagery (CGI) or performance capture. The film became the third-highest-grossing film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, behind The Avengers and Iron Man 3. It was the third-highest-grossing 2014 film (behind Transformers: Age of Extinction and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies), and the highest-grossing superhero film of 2014.
  
  The film earned positive reviews. Saldaña was nominated for numerous awards for her work in the film, including Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in an Action Movie, Favorite Action Movie Actress at the People's Choice Awards, and Best On-Screen Transformation at the MTV Movie Awards.
  
  In May 2014, she performed in Rosemary's Baby, a television mini-series adaptation of Ira Levin 's horror novel. Saldaña also co-produced the four-hour two-part show. In 2014, Saldaña was recognized by Elle magazine during The Women in Hollywood Awards. Women were honored for achievements in film and the motion-picture industry, including acting, directing, and producing.
  
  Saldaña starred in Nina (2016), an unauthorized biography about the jazz musician Nina Simone. The film depicts the late singer's rise to fame and relationship with her manager Clifton Henderson. Simone's family criticized Saldaña's being cast in this role. In August 2020, Saldaña apologized for taking the role, saying "I'm so sorry. I know better today and I'm never going to do that again. She's one of our giants and someone else should step up. Somebody else should tell her story."
  
  In 2016, she co-starred in the science-fiction sequel Star Trek Beyond released in July, and Ben Affleck 's crime drama Live by Night released in December.
  
  Saldaña returned as Gamora in the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, released in May 2017. She reprised the role in Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and its sequel Avengers: Endgame (2019), albeit as an alternate version of the character in the latter film. She returned in this role in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023), her last film in the MCU as Gamora.
  
  Also in 2017, Saldaña played Mrs. Mollé in I Kill Giants, Anders Walter 's adaptation of Joe Kelly's graphic novel I Kill Giants. Shooting commenced in Ireland in September 2016. Also that year, she appeared in the animated film My Little Pony: The Movie, performing the voice of pirate parrot Captain Celaeno.
  
  On May 3, 2018, she received a star at 6920 Hollywood Boulevard in the Motion Pictures section of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  
  Saldaña appeared in two roles in 2009 that raised her profile considerably. She played Nyota Uhura in Star Trek. The film's director J. J. Abrams asked Saldaña to play the role because he enjoyed her work. She met with Nichelle Nichols to understand the creation of Uhura's background and name of the character. Saldaña's mother was a Star Trek fan, and left her voice-mails during filming, advising on the role. Steven Spielberg had taught her the Vulcan salute five years earlier while he directed her in The Terminal. Star Trek (2009) was a box-office success earning $385.7 million.
  
  Saldaña's second high-profile film in 2009 was Avatar, where she portrayed the indigenous hunter Neytiri. Avatar was well received by critics, with an approval rating of 83% on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. It grossed $2.7 billion worldwide to become the highest-grossing film of all time, as well as specifically in the United States and Canada. It became the first film to gross more than $2 billion worldwide.
  
  The film was nominated for ten Saturn Awards, and won all ten at the 36th Saturn Awards ceremony. Saldaña's Saturn Award for Best Actress win marked a rare occurrence for an all- CG character.
  
  In 2010, Saldaña performed in The Losers as Aisha al-Fadhil, a native Bolivian woman. For the role, she was required to gain weight in order to carry weapons for eight hours a day. In 2010, she appeared in Takers, Death at a Funeral, and Burning Palms. Her television ad for Calvin Klein 's "Envy" line debuted in 2010. In 2011, Saldaña starred in the romantic comedy The Heart Specialist, and portrayed assassin Cataleya Restrepo in the crime drama Colombiana. Although the latter film earned negative reviews from critics, Saldaña's performance was praised.
  
  In 2012, she appeared in the romantic drama The Words, earning negative reviews from critics and little success at the box-office.
  
  In 2013, Saldaña reprised her role as Uhura in Star Trek Into Darkness, the sequel to the Star Trek re-boot. Like the previous film, it was a box-office success, ending its North American theater run with a box office total of $228,778,661, placing it as the eleventh-highest-grossing film of 2013. It earned $467,365,246 worldwide, ranking it in 14th place for 2013, and making it the highest-grossing film of the franchise. Saldaña voiced her character in the 2013 release of the Star Trek video game.
  
  In 2014, Saldaña played Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy. Saldaña portrayed the character with make-up rather than computer generated imagery (CGI) or performance capture. The film became the third-highest-grossing film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, behind The Avengers and Iron Man 3. It was the third-highest-grossing 2014 film (behind Transformers: Age of Extinction and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies), and the highest-grossing superhero film of 2014.
  
  The film earned positive reviews. Saldaña was nominated for numerous awards for her work in the film, including Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in an Action Movie, Favorite Action Movie Actress at the People's Choice Awards, and Best On-Screen Transformation at the MTV Movie Awards.
  
  In May 2014, she performed in Rosemary's Baby, a television mini-series adaptation of Ira Levin 's horror novel. Saldaña also co-produced the four-hour two-part show. In 2014, Saldaña was recognized by Elle magazine during The Women in Hollywood Awards. Women were honored for achievements in film and the motion-picture industry, including acting, directing, and producing.
  
  Saldaña starred in Nina (2016), an unauthorized biography about the jazz musician Nina Simone. The film depicts the late singer's rise to fame and relationship with her manager Clifton Henderson. Simone's family criticized Saldaña's being cast in this role. In August 2020, Saldaña apologized for taking the role, saying "I'm so sorry. I know better today and I'm never going to do that again. She's one of our giants and someone else should step up. Somebody else should tell her story."
  
  In 2016, she co-starred in the science-fiction sequel Star Trek Beyond released in July, and Ben Affleck 's crime drama Live by Night released in December.
  
  Saldaña returned as Gamora in the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, released in May 2017. She reprised the role in Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and its sequel Avengers: Endgame (2019), albeit as an alternate version of the character in the latter film. She returned in this role in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023), her last film in the MCU as Gamora.
  
  Also in 2017, Saldaña played Mrs. Mollé in I Kill Giants, Anders Walter 's adaptation of Joe Kelly's graphic novel I Kill Giants. Shooting commenced in Ireland in September 2016. Also that year, she appeared in the animated film My Little Pony: The Movie, performing the voice of pirate parrot Captain Celaeno.
  
  On May 3, 2018, she received a star at 6920 Hollywood Boulevard in the Motion Pictures section of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.