As Avatar: The Way of Water hits the $2 billion box office milestone, veteran actress Zoe Saldana received a rare accomplishment that makes her stand out from her Hollywood peers.
On top of Saldana's impressive resume of crossing fandoms like the Avatar, Star Trek, and Marvel universes (the latter of which she would not be too upset to not be called back for), the actress also finds herself among one of the highest-grossing actors.
Several stars from the Marvel Cinematic Universe are in the top three, namely Robert Downey Jr. ($14.393 billion), Samuel L. Jackson ($14.376 billion), and leading the list is Scarlett Johansson with whopping earnings of $14.5 billion.
Despite the Marvel trio's lead, Saldana has entered the most exclusive company in terms of box office earnings.
Zoe Saldana Makes Box Office History
Zoe Saldana is now the first actor to ever appear in four movies that have crossed $2 billion at the worldwide box office.
The actress starred in Avatar ($2.9 billion) and Avatar: The Way of Water ($2 billion) as Neytiri while also portraying Gamora in Avengers: Infinity War ($2.052 billion) and Avengers: Endgame ($2.7 billion).
Avatar 2 is only the sixth film to reach the $2 billion mark at the box office.
Despite not being billed as a lead in the last two Avengers movies, Saldana's Gamora still played a pivotal role in both films. Moreover, the actress' performance as Neytiri in the two Avatar films has been highly praised by fans and critics.
Zoe Saldana previously got candid about how "[she's] felt stuck doing these franchises," though they're still something she feels "very grateful for."
Saldana also pointed out that "there was a time where it was so exciting," but now "[it's] just a lot."
Despite those comments, there's no denying that Saldana is the ultimate box office queen and a global star.
Saldana is also poised to break more records as she is expected to return as Neytiri in future Avatar movies.
Both director James Cameron and producer Jon Landau have alluded to the fact that Neytiri will survive past the events of Avatar 3, so the actress' comeback, combined with another potential box office run for the threequel, would push her to be the lone actress to star in five billion-dollar-earning Hollywood movies.
If Avatar 2's mass number of box office records are anything to go by, Saldana is set to smash even more records as Pandora's story continues.
Avatar: The Way of Water is still playing in theaters worldwide.
