Zoe Saldaña has given fantastic performances in the Avatar movies, but the Oscars haven’t shown any love for motion capture acting.
When it comes to the Academy Awards, they’re not exactly known for showing much love for motion-capture acting, which Avatar star Zoe Saldaña admitted is “quite deflating.“
“Old habits die hard, and when you have old establishments, it’s really hard to bring forward change,” Saldaña told The Independent about the Oscars not recognizing motion-capture acting. “And I understand that, so I’m not bitter about it, but it is quite deflating when you give 120 per cent of yourself into something. I mean, not winning is OK, not being nominated is OK, but when you’re overlooked and then minimised and completely disregarded…“
Saldaña gives a fantastic performance as Neytiri in James Cameron’s Avatar movies, but some believe that performance is more the work of CG artists than the actress herself. “I know the difference between that and what we did,” she said. “At some point you have to ask yourself: why is it that I do what I do? Is it so others can give me approval? Or is it because I don’t want to do anything else?“
Andy Serkis has won praise for his digital performances as Gollum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and as Caesar in the Planet of the Apes franchise, but just like Saldaña, the Oscars have ignored him. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before the Academy recognizes these types of performances, and we’ll look back at Serkis and Saldaña as pioneers of the art form.
Saldaña will have a few more opportunities to wow us with her digital performance as she reprises her role of Neytiri in Avatar: Fire and Ash, the next installment of the franchise. The sequel will also introduce another biome of Pandora, where the “aggressive, volcanic race” of Na’vi, known as the Ash People, reside. Avatar: Fire and Ash is currently set for a December 19, 2025 release, followed by Avatar 4 on December 21, 2029 and Avatar 5 on December 18, 2031. Cameron even has ideas for a potential Avatar 6 and 7, but that all depends on whether the demand for the franchise is still there. “There’ll be just far enough apart that they remain events, hopefully, in the lives of fans, of people who want to follow us, but not so far apart that it’s like there’s a generational difference between one movie,” Cameron said. “We’re fortunate we survived that, right? We got over that hurdle. So now we believe it’s going to come at the right pacing.“
Should Zoe Saldaña have been recognized for her performance in the Avatar movies?