KEY POINTS
- Zoe Saldaña’s roles in Avatar and MCU made her first actor to star in top three highest-grossing films in history.
- She surpassed $15.47 billion in global ticket sales after her 2025 Oscar win and the box-office success of Avatar: Fire and Ash.
LOS ANGELES: Zoe Saldaña has claimed the title of the highest-grossing actor in film history, a monumental achievement fuelled by the box office supremacy of franchises like “Avatar” and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
Her global ticket sales now total a staggering $15.47 billion, a figure that surged with the December 2025 release of Avatar: Fire and Ash.
Franchise Titan
Saldaña’s ascent to the top of the box office charts is largely attributed to her iconic role as the Na’vi warrior Neytiri in James Cameron’s “Avatar” series.
She has starred in all three films of the sci-fi epic, including the original 2009 film and its 2022 sequel, The Way of Water, which hold the No. 1 and No. 3 spots, respectively, on the all-time highest-grossing films list.
Her pivotal role as Gamora in the MCU, particularly in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame (the No. 2 highest-grossing film), added billions more to her cumulative total.
This unique position makes Saldaña a star of the three highest-grossing films in history—a record unmatched by any other performer.
Landmark year of triumph
The past year solidified Saldaña’s status as both a box office titan and an acclaimed artist.
In March 2025, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the musical drama Emilia Pérez, making history as the first Dominican American to win an Oscar.
That critical triumph was followed by another commercial juggernaut.
Avatar: Fire and Ash, released in December, has already grossed $1.23 billion globally, providing the final boost to push her past the $15 billion mark and ahead of all peers.
Numbers behind the crown
According to industry tallies, Saldaña ranked as the third-highest-grossing actor in 2024, behind fellow MCU stars Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson, with her films having earned over $14 billion.
The success of Fire and Ash added nearly $1.5 billion to that total, securing her the top position.
Her filmography represents a unique blend of cinematic phenomena that have defined 21st-century pop culture, from pioneering visual-effects landmarks to superhero event films.
As Avatar: Fire and Ash continues its theatrical run, Saldaña’s historic box office record is expected to grow even further, setting a new benchmark for success in the global film industry.
