Zoe Saldana Reveals Post-‘Avatar’ Breakdown

For some achieving the kind of fame that comes with starring in the biggest box office hit ever released, “Avatar,” is a dream come true. Zoe Saldana thought the same – until the dream turned into a nightmare and she nearly collapsed under the weight of her newfound fame.

The actress is now promoting her latest film, the stunt-heavy action film “Colombiana,” and, as such, she’s opening to Latina Magazine on certain aspects of her life that fans may not be very familiar with.

Take, for instance, the way in which Zoe handled the media exposure and attention that came after James Cameron’s “Avatar”: she says the experience wasn’t as rosy as she initially expected it to be.

“The year after Avatar was just emotionally overwhelming. I was traveling all over the world, waking up in different time zones. Your body gets exhausted, and by the end of the year I just collapsed,” Zoe tells Latina.

She didn’t just collapse, she came very close to a total breakdown, she reveals.

“I was in Paris training for Colombiana, sitting in my hotel room, and I couldn’t stop crying. I couldn’t stay awake. I must have slept for an entire month. It took me the rest of the year, even as I was working and shooting Colombiana, to pick myself up,” says the star.

Eventually, she made it through and is now back to her normal self. Zoe knows that “Avatar” put her on the map in a way in which no other film could have done, but she says she’s determined not to let that one project define her.

If anything, it has made her want to work harder to prove herself to the world. She’s an actress because she’s passionate about it and she wants to continue working even if, by some standards, she already has it made.

“I just want the best filmmakers in the world to tell me, ‘You’re good, kid, you’re legit.’ The recognition will never get old, and I’ll never get accustomed to it. I don’t ever want to, because that will mean I’m taking it for granted. That’s why I work, not for the luxuries or the awards,” she says.

“Colombiana,” also starring Michael Vartan, comes out at the end of the month. Below is the official trailer.