Zoë Saldana's artist husband took her surname to be supportive, and their three kids have both of their last names.
Marriage is not just for those who believe in the traditional form of it. It is also for couples who like to challenge it. There are unconventional couples everywhere, who bring their unique twist to marriage. Actress Zoë Saldana, 42, and her husband, Marco Perego-Saldana, 41, are one of those couples. The Avatar star began dating her artist husband right before she shot Infinitely Polar Bear.
It was a whirlwind romance, and she only followed her heart. The 42-year-old actress said that the spark was there "before I even saw his face," reported USA TODAY. "I just saw him from behind. It was 6:30 in the morning, I was on a flight to New York. And I can't even describe to you, it was a vibration. He turned in that moment because he felt the vibration as well." They got married soon after in 2013.
Serendipity much? This kind of romantic story is only seen on the silver screen, but the actress is living it. "I know people don't believe in it; I didn't believe in it. I'm a very Sigmund Freud person, I'm very logical. But that — I'm OK not having an explanation for that. Because I don't need to explain that. It was enough that I felt it. And that was it," she said.
The Guardians of the Galaxy star told Marie Claire, "I don’t do the ABCs, I do what my heart says, what my heart feels. So, from the moment I met my husband, we were together. We knew." After all, it's hard to explain when we feel something so intensely. "I met my husband, I wasn't going to try it out and see if it works. No, I felt it. I went with the feeling," she said.
Getting to that stage in her relationship wasn't an easy journey for her. "I have been in relationships where a man has disrespected me, and I don't need to be friends with that man anymore. I don't want to be the one going, 'I'm cool, because I'm friends with all my exes.' There's a reason why you're called an ex. I crossed you off my list. Moving on. You cross a line, you need to know that you're going to walk this earth knowing that there's an individual who has no respect for you," she said.
Her relationship advice to people is "not to settle." She said, "If you're not happy with a person, leave. And wait until you find that one person who makes you feel good about yourself every single day and is not expecting you to change, but to grow."
Today, they are parents to sons, Zen, 6, and 4-year-old twins Cy and Bowie. However, the world didn't even know she was married until three months after it happened. He is so supportive of her that he wanted to take her surname. They are also raising their sons in a gender-neutral environment.
"We have a very gender-neutral environment where my husband participates in a lot of tasks that were normally given to women and vice versa," she told Us Weekly. "I get to do a lot of male things, which is, I don’t know, put the TV together, fix things that break. We’re sort of a very gender-fluid household. I think it’s important to raise boys in that environment, and girls as well."
Once, one of her twins said that boys were stronger than girls, and she decided to help her child not attach stereotypes. She hopes to "not bring all this charge that you have as an adult and as a woman into their lives. They’re a blank slate." And, the progressive couple has been paving the way for their children.
The Star Trek actress also keeps her family close to her heart. "I love coming to New York because my family is here," she told Marie Claire. She grew up partly in Queens, where her mother, stepfather, and grandmother still live. "But I'm always busy working, so I make them all come sleep over with me," she added. Her family includes her two sisters, Mariel and Cisely, with whom she runs the L.A.-based production company CineStar Productions, and from whom she is virtually inseparable. "They bring their pillows, and we get extra beds," Saldana continued. "My grandma lies on the couch. It's just delicious," she added.
References:
https://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/a10056/all-eyes-on-zoe-saldana-august-cover-story-2014/
https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/how-zoe-saldana-keeps-home-gender-neutral-for-3-sons/
