Zoe Saldaña Says She Felt ‘Stuck’ in Marvel Franchises for a Decade

Zoe Saldaña is trying to get un-stuck from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

After spending over a decade in the MCU, the “Guardians of the Galaxy” star revealed she felt “stuck doing these franchises” for years.

“I’m very grateful for the opportunities that they provided, from collaborating with amazing directors and getting to meet cast members that I consider friends and getting to play a role that fans, especially children, love,” Saldaña told WWD. “I feel that for the last 10 years of my life, I’ve been just stuck. I felt stuck doing these franchises.”

Saldaña continued, “It also meant that I felt artistically stuck in my craft of not being able to expand or grow or challenge myself by playing different sorts of genres and different roles.”

The actress is reprising her blockbuster “Avatar” role for sequel “Avatar: The Way of Water,” out December 16.

“But today, now that I’m 44, I’ve been able to have these opportunities, and I took control over my aging and I took control over my voice and how I consider myself as a woman,” the “From Scratch” star and producer said. “I’m so happy that I’m able to collaborate with filmmakers and producers and people in this industry that want that for women, that want women to be ageless and who don’t fetishize women’s youth. And so it’s interesting. It’s really interesting.”

Earlier this year, Saldaña hinted at a more permanent exit from Marvel.

“I can never say no to anything, but that green makeup? I wouldn’t be upset if it didn’t happen again,” she told Variety. “I miss Gamora, but I don’t miss 3:30 a.m. calls and five-hour makeup sessions and trips to the dermatologist afterwards.”

Saldaña added, “Every time that, you know, that 8-year-old or that dad and mom or those generational fans that remind me that what I did was special to them, it makes me not be cynical about Marvel. It makes me understand that younger audiences should stop being overlooked. They have feelings too and if something impacts them, just because we consider it stupid or immature or cheeky, doesn’t mean it’s not special.”

Fellow MCU co-star Elizabeth Olsen previously said she became “frustrated” with contractural obligations from Marvel. Olsen, who has played Wanda Maximoff aka the Scarlet Witch in MCU installments since 2014, told The New York Times, “I had this job security but I was losing these pieces that I felt were more part of my being. And the further I got away from that, the less I became considered for it.”