Zoe Saldana added another trophy to her collection on Sunday when she won the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) award.
On February 23, the 47-year-old actress received the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role award for Emilia Perez.
Accepting the accolade, Zoe said, “To be in this room is a true honour. This is my community, this is my circus.”
“Thank you to SAG-AFTRA. I got my first SAG card in 1998. I didn’t even know what SAG was,” she continued.
Thanking her fellow nominees Monica Barbaro, Jamie Lee Curtis, Danielle Deadwyler, and Ariana Grande, Zoe said, “It was an honour to watch your performances this year, I was deeply moved.”
“I am grateful that my mother and father and sisters looked it up and helped me educate myself to know what it means to be a part of a union that protects me so I can make a living out of this crazy industry,” added the Avatar actress.
In her speech, Zoe also urged actors to embrace their “artistic freedom.”
“I am proud to be a part of a union that allows me to be who I am. I’ve never been questioned where I come from or judged for how I speak or what my pronouns are. Everyone has the right to be who they are,” the Guardian of the Galaxy star told the crowd.
“Emilia Perez is about truth and love and us actors really have to tell stories that are thought-provoking and beautiful and live within the spectrum of artistic freedom,” Zoe concluded her speech.