Q&A: Zoë Saldana

EW: In 2009, we saw something new from a Star Trek film — a messy and interesting romance between your Uhura and Zachary Quinto’s Spock. Was it exciting to find out where the sequel would take Starfleet’s star-crossed lovers?

SALDANA: It was exciting, yes, but also I was nervous because of the challenge of it — how do you keep it from becoming melodramatic or stale? It’s always interesting when you tell the story of how two people come together and when you tell the story of how they end. But [the story] of how they’re living? That’s not as interesting, I guess, even though the middle part is what really matters. There were a lot of things for us to pick from, and there’s a lot [in the new film] for them to be tested by. Whether or not they stay together throughout this? That remains to be seen.

EW: You don’t sound very upbeat about their chances.

SALDANA: The reality is it doesn’t matter what they do when they are young. They’re still going to end up, we know, being like the characters in the [original 1960s] Gene Roddenberry series. If that’s the case, then they’re not going to be together forever, but to establish a history between them is beautiful.

EW: This is the 10th anniversary of the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Add Avatar, two Trek films, Colombiana, and The Losers — are you becoming a specialist in Comic-Con culture?

SALDANA: I do have a science-fiction background. My mom was a sci-fi geek, and I grew up reading things like Dune and The Neverending Story. I don’t know if those things gravitate toward me or I go to them. But if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. It’s written in the stars.