Happy Birthday! Zoe Saldana Turns 38 Years Old Today

Zoe Saldana has had an incredible past couple of years. In 2009 she exploded into a mega-stardom with two blockbuster films. First there was the role of Lt. Uhura in J.J. Abrams, Star Trek reboot which made 385 Million dollars world wide. Next was James Cameron's CG epic, Avatar where she played a nearly 10 foot tall blue alien named Neytiri via motion capture. Avatar would go on to make 2.7 billion dollars, making it the highest grossing film, world wide of all time.

It was actually thanks to Steven Spielberg's The Terminal that she learned the Vulcan salute: Women's Health magazine reported back in 2009: "Coincidentally, Zoë's character on that film was a Trek fan, and Spielberg taught her the Vulcan salute. "Trekkies are everywhere!" she says."

From there she didn't stop. Starring in the comic book adapted The Losers and then Colombiana she solidified herself as an action star.

Born, Zoe Yadira Saldaña-Nazario in New Jersey, she spent most of her childhood in Queens, New York. She speaks both Spanish and English and lived for a time in Dominican Republic with her mother. She learned dance at the ECOS Espacio de Danza Academy which helped her get her first acting role in the 2000 film, Center Stage.

At 38, Zoe Saldana has now expanded to producing in 2014 she a TV adaptation of Rosemary's Baby which she also starred in. Coming soon, she'll be producing a horror film called 'Dominion' through Paramount Pictures. With Guardian of the Galaxy 2 currently filming and the third Star Trek film, Star Trek Beyond about to be released only time will tell how far Saldana can go.

After you've seen her on the big screen this summer, be sure to check out her fantastic recent Lip Sync Battle with Star Trek co-star Zachary Quinto that just aired on Spike.