Why Zoe Saldana’s former manager wanted her to change her real name: ‘I knew that I liked my name’

Zoe Saldaña is opening up about the highs and lows of her career in Hollywood, including the time her former manager encouraged her to change her name in the early days of her success.

“When I did Center Stage, I remember being discouraged by my management at that time to use my name,” the actress revealed during her recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, explaining that “their intention was never for me to stop being who I was. They celebrated who I was.”

The 43-year-old star confessed that she didn’t want to use a different name, however she understood the reason for the advice, as her “manager at the time was a former singer and a ballroom performer, and she did change her name as well when she was a teenager back in the ’60s,” because it was a common practice at the time.

Zoe, who is currently promoting her new Netflix film ‘The Adam Project,’ alongside Ryan Reynolds, Mark Ruffalo and Jennifer Garner, said that although that advice can be considered “poor” today, her management meant no harm and she “still knew” she liked her name.

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The star also shared some of the best advice she has received throughout her career, from her experience working with Steven Spielberg on the set of ‘The Terminal,’ who said to her, “In order for you to know where you’re going, you must always know where you came from.”

And from James Cameron on the set of ‘Avatar,’ who told her “Girl, you gotta know how to run!” as she had been previously advised not to run to preserve her feet.