Zoe Saldaña is growing frustrated with political questions, mainly because she doesn’t find them being asked in equal measure across the industry. The Oscar winner said during a conversation at the Locarno Film Festival that she often participates in Q&As because she is eager to talk about the craft of acting. However, Saldaña keeps finding herself fielding political questions instead.
“One thing that’s incredibly limiting, and frustrating, is when I’m the only person of color or the only woman on stage, and that happens quite a lot for women and for people of color. And I wait for my turn to be asked a question about my craft, and I’m asked the political question,” Saldaña said, giving the following example: “What do you think we need to do to make films more inclusive?”
“I’m sorry, you don’t ask the only person that comes from the marginalized community,” Saldaña noted. “You ask the other 80 of them that are part of the gatekeepers, and you ask them if they know the answer because I think that we’re making people of color work double to be in a room.”
Saldaña did not give any specific examples of press tours where she’s been inundated with political questions when compared to her co-stars and crew, although she was notably asked about “Emilia Perez” offending Mexicans just minutes after she won the best supporting actress Oscar in 2025.
A journalist in the Oscars press room told Saldaña that the movie had been “really hurtful for us Mexicans,” to which the actor responded: “First of all, I’m very, very sorry that many Mexicans felt offended. That was never our intention. We spoke from a place of love. I don’t share your opinion. For me, the heart of this movie was not Mexico. We were making a film about friendship. We were making a film about four women.”
“These women could have been Russian, could have been Dominican, could have been Black from Detroit, could have been from Israel, could have been from Gaza. And these women are still very universal women that are struggling every day, but trying to survive systemic oppression and trying to find the most authentic voices,” she added at the time. “So I will stand by that, but I’m also always open to sit down with all of my Mexican brothers and sisters, with love and respect, [to have] a great conversation on how ‘Emilia Pérez’ could have been done better. I welcome it.”
Saldaña currently stars in the third season of “Lioness,” streaming on Paramount+. She attended the Locarno Film Festival this year and received a Special Honorary Pardo from festival director Giona Nazzaro. Click here for more highlights from her discussion.
