Zoe Saldaña Says She Won't Reprise Gamora Role After 'Guardians Vol. 3': 'It Is the End for Me'

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 releases in theaters May 5

Zoe Saldaña is finished playing Gamora in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter for a cover story on filmmaker James Gunn and the development of the Guardians of the Galaxy movie series, Saldaña, 44, reaffirmed that she will no longer play the character after Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 releases on May 5.

"I don't think this is the end for the Guardians," the actress said, noting that she originally only expected to portray Gamora for the property's original 2014 movie. "It is the end for me, for Gamora."

The article covers how Saldaña and costars Chris Pratt, Karen Gillan and Dave Bautista and more actors supported director Gunn, 56, during his months-long estrangement from Marvel after he was fired from future Guardians movies in 2018. He was later reinstated in 2019.

In the piece, Saldaña, who THR reported visited Gunn at his home in the wake of his firing, said she gave a speech thanking the Guardians crew on her last day of filming for the new movie.

"I thanked James for just his time and his patience and his guidance and his friendship," she told the outlet.

Related:Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3: Everything to Know

Saldaña previously described her final turn as Gamora as "a very sweet departure" while speaking with Entertainment Weekly about the third Guardians movie back in October. At the time, she said she does not know what is in store for the character after the new movie, noting that Gamora "has taken a different journey" than the rest of the team's characters.

"Filming started bitter in the beginning 'cause obviously you're anticipating the end," Saldaña said at the time. "But I'm just so happy that once again I got to work with great people. I had an evolution that I witnessed of myself, but also my director and my cast. I just felt very blessed and grateful."

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"It was a very sweet departure, I have to say," she added.

The Guardians franchise's future is unclear ahead of the third movie's release. Gunn has moved on to a new role as a co-CEO at DC Studios and the mind behind its next Superman movie, Superman: Legacy.

Related:Zoë Saldaña Says Intense Secrecy Tied to Marvel Roles 'Can Be Annoying Sometimes'

While the filmmaker has said as far back as Jan. 2022 that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will be "the last time people will see this team of Guardians," THR reported that the new movie hints at a future for the property with new characters taking over for Star-Lord (Pratt), Drax (Bautista), Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) and Groot (Vin Diesel).

According to an official synopsis for the film, Vol. 3 finds Star-Lord "still reeling from the loss of Gamora" (which happened in 2018's Avengers: Infinity War), but he "must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them."

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 releases May 5.

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