Zoe Saldana’s Tattoo, Career, Family, and More

Golden Globes

Zoe Saldana has been making waves with her rib tattoos, reminding us of how powerful, polished and trendsetter she can be. But there is more to this The Avatar and Guardians of the Galaxy star, than just the beautiful tattoo.

Here’s a full-on look at Zoe Saldana, her career, her family, her ink, and the little things making headlines now. We’ll stroll through it together. Because there’s more than meets the Instagram-filter eye.

Who she is

Born June 19, 1978, in Passaic, New Jersey, Zoe Yadira Saldaña Nazario grew up in Queens, New York. She’s Dominican and Puerto Rican through heritage (her dad, Dominican, her mom is half-Dominican, half-Puerto Rican). She’s not just “another actress.” She’s among the highest-grossing actresses ever: her films include some of the biggest box-office hits.

Family & roots

Zoe lost her father when she was nine, which upended life. She and her sisters moved to the Dominican Republic for a time. “You can’t speak English; you have to speak only Spanish,” she recalled. That difficult period helped shape her sense of self and identity.
She’s married to Italian‐artist Marco Perego‑Saldaña (he adopted her surname too), and they have three sons: twins Cy & Bowie (10) and Zen (8).

Family matters. She has said that being a mother changed her priorities. While work still matters, life, legacy, and presence matter more.

Career high points & what’s new

Zoe’s been a presence in huge franchises: think Avatar, Avengers: Endgame, etc.

But right now, she’s doing interesting things:

She voiced Aunt Olga in Elio (2025), a first-for-Pixar story centered on a Mexican-Dominican family, and her heritage helped shape the character.
She got named global ambassador for Cartier—so yes, the jewelry world too. “Honored to be chosen and embark on the next chapter of this beautiful relationship,” she said on her Instagram post.
And: during her Oscar for Emilia Pérez, she revealed that her statuette is “gender fluid” and uses they/them pronouns. Yes, you read that right.

The tattoo story that got fans raving

Years ago, Zoe revealed she got a tattoo of her husband’s face on her left rib cage. “He has a tattoo of my face on his arm… so it was only fair that I return the gesture,” she said. “I always wanted to.”
Ouch is the reaction she had: “It HURT! I was bedridden the next day,” she recalled. “In fact, I was the one who was going to do it in the first place, but we get our tattoos with an amazing artist called Mark Mahoney. Every time we go for me, Marco would end up convincing me that I didn’t have to get it, so that he can get a new tattoo.” That tattoo is personal. It’s art. It’s commitment. It’s a memory.

The new moment

In October 2025, she turned heads during a sports outing with her son, wearing a cut-out bodysuit that perfectly revealed the tattoos along her rib cage.
The look quickly became a “quiet luxury” / “off-duty trend” moment: showing purposeful skin, showing meaning.

Balancing motherhood and fashion, the body suit was paired with joggers and white sneakers. Her look demonstrates that fashion isn’t always about big logos or branding. It’s minimalist pieces that make you shine.

Because it’s more than “look at me with ink.” Its heritage meets self-expression meets motherhood meets style. For someone who has said “fashion is another facet of art”, wearing her story (literally) on her body is powerful.

The vibes & what we can learn

Authenticity wins: Zoe shows up as a mother, a wife, an artist, a person with roots.
Style with substance: That bodysuit moment? More than fashion. A statement.
Heritage matters: Whether in Elio or in her upbringing, she brings her full self.
Life evolves: From big box-office films to more intimate stories, from big tattoos to subtle ones—it’s all movement.

In her own words

“You can’t speak English; you have to speak only Spanish. … And then you get bullied because kids don’t understand you.” — on her childhood in the Dominican Republic.
The Challenges of Working With Her Husband

A few weeks ago, Saldaña admitted that working with her husband was challenging. “Working together on that music video was extremely challenging,” Because it was the first time I realized his approach to working, and he realized mine. She said they have been able to work many things out together, whether it’s life, or family, now it’s work.

Saldaña says, especially during rehearsal, “He was like, ‘I don’t like the way you’re talking to me when we’re rehearsing…” “I would tell him, ‘I keep telling you to pick me up!’

Family is everything to her. During the 2025 Academy Awards, she won her first Oscar for best supporting actress, thanks to her remarkable role as attorney Rita Mora Castro in Emilia Pérez. She said in her speech, “And to my husband, with that beautiful hair,” Saldaña said at the time, as the camera panned to Perego-Saldaña in the audience. “The biggest honor of my life is being your partner. You hung the moon in our beautiful, perfect sons Cy, Bowie, and Zen. They fill our skies every night with stars.”

What’s next?

Look out for:

More behind-the-scenes of Elio, and what else she might voice or star in.
Style moves. With Cartier behind her, red carpets will have a new language.
Maybe new ink? Maybe more self-expression. She seems to be in a phase of comfortable boldness.
Family moments. Because she’s clearly protecting that, celebrating that, living that.

So there you have it. Zoe Saldaña: bold but grounded, global but rooted, glamorous but real. Her tattoo is just one chapter. Her story? Still being written.