Zoe Saldaña Reflects on Her First Movie, “Center Stage — ”and the Sweet Way Her Grandma Predicted Her Success

On 'The View,' the actress said the 2000 film helped "solidify" her transition from dance to acting.

Zoe Saldaña looked back on Center Stage months before the 2000 film’s big 25th anniversary.

While on The View on Oct. 29 promoting the second season of her Paramount+ series Special Opps: Lioness and the highly anticipated film musical Emilia Pérez, co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin noted that the landmark anniversary of Saldaña's debut film is coming up next year.

“I love Center Stage!” Saldaña, 46, gushed of the film in which she played Eva Rodríguez, a student at a fictional ballet academy based on the School of American Ballet at New York’s Lincoln Center.

Saldaña, who studied dance as a child and has described ballet as an early passion, noted that the film shot in her “hometown” of New York City, and that she turned 21 while filming.

The movie's primary location held special meaning for her as well, she explained.

“We were shooting it in Lincoln Center, which was this place that I used to go there all the time as a little girl with my grandma,” Saldaña told The View hosts. “And my gram would go, ‘One day, one day, you’re going to be in there.’ And it all brought it full circle.”

But, she said, Center Stage also helped her realize the time had come to move away from dance and pursue acting.

“It was about ballet, which was such a big part of my life,” she said of the film. “But I needed to sort of transition into other forms of art. And I feel like Center Stage kind of solidified that.”

Related: Center Stage Turns 20! Here Are the Best Moments from the Iconic Dance Movie

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

Prior to the 2000 film, Saldaña had only appeared in a two-episode arc on Law & Order. But Center Stage launched her film career, which would include major roles in multiple blockbuster franchises like J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek films, James Cameron’s Avatar and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy.

In 2020, Saldaña reunited with Center Stage costars Amanda Schull, Sascha Radetsky and Ethan Stiefel for a virtual fundraiser the American Ballet Theatre's Crisis Relief Fund, which provided aid for dancers, production crews, musicians, ballet staff and faculty impacted by canceled engagements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.