Zoe Saldaña Becomes First Actor to Have 4 Movies Make Over $2 Billion at Box Office (2024)

Zoe Saldaña is in a box office league of her own.

Over the weekend, the actress's latest movie, Avatar: The Way of Water, surpassed $2 billion at the worldwide box office, making Saldaña, 44, the first actor to have four movies earn more than $2 billion. Her other three titles to reach the milestone are 2009's Avatar, 2019's Avengers: Endgame and 2018's Avengers: Infinity War.

Additionally, Avatar: The Way of Water director James Cameron is now the first director to have three films over $2 billion, the other two being the first Avatar and 1997's Titanic (while will be re-released in 3D this Valentine's Day).

Saldaña plays Neytiri in the Avatar films, which have more sequels on the way, and she next plays her Marvel Cinematic Universe character Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, in theaters May 5.

Last year, the actress, who also starred in the recent Star Trek movies, told Women's Wear Daily that she sometimes felt creatively "stuck" doing franchise films.

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"I feel that for the last 10 years of my life, I've been just stuck. I felt stuck doing these franchises," Saldana said. "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."

"But," she added, "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."

Later in December, she clarified those remarks, reiterating that she is "grateful" for the major movie projects.

RELATED VIDEO: Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña on 16-Year Friendship and Memorable First Meeting: 'She Couldn't Understand My Accent'

"I feel grateful and like the luckiest girl in this town knowing that I was invited to join films with special directors in a special cast," she told Deadline. "And they resonated with people so much so that we get a chance to come back again and come back another time. If anything, I've reaped all the benefits of that, I've gained friends. I still have mentors that I call and I lean into."

She added, "I think that once I started my family, it just became really hard for me to sustain both worlds and also then cater to this curiosity of playing other different characters or playing earthlings, you know? But I'm happy in space. I've always been happy in space. I relate to people that love space as well."

Avatar: The Way of Water is in theaters now.

Zoe Saldaña Becomes First Actor to Have 4 Movies Make Over $2 Billion at Box Office (2024)

FAQs

Zoe Saldaña Becomes First Actor to Have 4 Movies Make Over $2 Billion at Box Office? ›

With her latest, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” crossed the $2 billion mark at the box office, making Saldaña the first actor to appear in four films that have achieved that distinction.

Who recently becomes the first actor to have four movies that have grossed over $2 billion at the box office? ›

Zoe Saldaña Becomes First Actor to Have 4 Movies Make Over $2 Billion at Box Office.

How much did Zoe Saldaña make from Avatar 1? ›

Zoe Saldaña earned $4 million for starring in James Cameron's Avatar in 2009. The film would go on to become the highest-grossing movie of all time.

What was the first movie to hit $2 billion? ›

1. "Avatar" (2009)

What billion-dollar movies did Zoe Saldaña make? ›

According to measurement firm Comscore, Saldaña's four highest-grossing movies are 2009's “Avatar” ($2.87 billion), 2019's “Avengers: Endgame” ($2.8 billion), 2018's “Avengers: Infinity War” ($2.05 billion) and 2022's “Avatar: The Way of Water” ($2 billion).

What are the 4 highest-grossing movies? ›

Top Lifetime Grosses
RankTitleLifetime Gross
1Avatar$2,923,706,026
2Avengers: Endgame$2,799,439,100
3Avatar: The Way of Water$2,320,250,281
4Titanic$2,264,750,694
116 more rows

Who was the first actor to be paid $1 million for a movie? ›

The first actor to break the $1 million threshold was Marlon Brando (USA), who was paid $1.25 million (£400,500) – equivalent today to $8.8 million; £6.1 million – for his starring role as Fletcher Christian in Mutiny on the Bounty (USA, 1962).

Has any movie hit $3 billion? ›

Gone with the Wind—first released in 1939—is generally considered to be the most successful film, with Guinness World Records in 2014 estimating its adjusted global gross at $3.4 billion.

What is the fastest $1 billion dollar movies? ›

While some have built up revenue over time, these films were able to do it faster than people could get a ticket to go see it.
  • 5 'Jurassic World' (2015) ...
  • 4 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' (2015) ...
  • 3 'Spider-Man: No Way Home' (2021) ...
  • 2 'Avengers: Infinity War' (2018) ...
  • 1 'Avengers: Endgame' (2019)
Sep 6, 2023

What is the #1 movie in the world? ›

All Time Worldwide Box Office
RankYearMovie
12009Avatar
22019Avengers: Endgame
32022Avatar: The Way of Water
41997Titanic
76 more rows

Is Zoe Saldaña a Millionaire? ›

Actress Zoe Saldana's net worth is estimated to be $40 million, per Celebrity Net Worth. Saldana has appeared in some of the highest-grossing films ever, including the Guardians of the Galaxy and the Avatar movies.

How much has Zoe Saldaña made from Marvel? ›

A film that went on to make nearly $3 billion at the box office. After that, she reportedly only earned $100,000 for her first role in 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. For 'Avengers: Infinity War', Saldana took home $3 million. She then earned an estimated $11 million for her role in 'Avengers: Endgame'.

Who is the highest-grossing actress? ›

Scarlett Johansson is the biggest female box office star, generating a lifetime revenue of $5.2 billion. Johansson plays Black Widow in many of the top-grossing Avengers films alongside leading roles in dramas such as Her, Lost in Translation, and Marriage Story.

What actor has the highest box office gross? ›

Robert Downey Jr.

Which movie became the first to gross $1 billion at the box office in 1998? ›

Events. March 1 – Titanic becomes the first film to gross over $1 billion at the worldwide box office. Twenty days later, the film won eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Which movie has become the first film to cost $200 million and to earn more than $1 billion worldwide? ›

Titanic was the most expensive film ever made at the time, with a production budget of $200 million.

What actor made the most money from one movie? ›

Keanu Reeves is the highest-paid actor in history for a single film. He received 30 million dollars for Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions. Although it is clearly a successful saga, like 'John Wick', it beat a lot of strong competition.

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