Zoe Saldana mourned her Star Trek costar Anton Yelchin in a touching post to Instagram on Thursday, June 23, just days after his untimely death — and the Nina actress promised that she would not soon forget him.
“Your sudden and unexpected departure has left us all broken hearted,” she captioned a shot of the 27-year-old actor smiling in a fedora. “I woke up today feeling absolute gratitude that I had you as a friend and colleague. Your life has been cut short, but I will always tell everyone about you.”
Saldana, 38, plays Uhura in the reboot of the popular sci-fi franchise. Other principal characters include Idris Elba as Krall, Chris Pine as Kirk, John Cho as Sulu and Zachary Quinto as Spock. Yelchin played beloved character Chekov.
“You were kind, present, old souled, curious, brilliant, funny, humble, honest, and undeniably talented,” Saldana continued. “Good bye Anton, it was an honor to have crossed paths with you.”
As previously reported, the Like Crazy actor was on his way to meet his friends for a rehearsal when he was involved in a freak car accident. According to authorities, his friends later found him at his house on Sunday, June 19, pinned between his car and a security fence after his car had rolled down his steep driveway.
Saldana previously tweeted her condolences on Monday, telling fans that she and the rest of the Star Trek family were “devastated by our friend’s loss. We are mourning his passing and celebrating the beautiful spirit that he was. #RIPAnton.”
The actress was previously away on vacation in Cuba when he died, but Saldana’s rep told Us Weekly in a statement that she wanted to “first and foremost” offer her “heart and prayers” to the late actor’s family.
The third Star Trek film, Star Trek Beyond, is set for release in July.
