With two films popular with teen audiences to her credit, Saldana signed up to play one of a trio of best friends embarking on a life-altering road trip in "Crossroads" (2002), a routine coming-of-age feature, remarkable only as the vehicle in which pop sensation Britney Spears made her feature debut. Balancing commercial fare with more edgy projects, she was featured in the hip-hop action drama "Snipes" (screened at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2001) co-starring another pop sensation, crossover rapper Nelly. Saldana was subsequently featured in the independent music-themed drama "Drumline" (2002), her relatively new but diversified career labeling the multitalented performer as an adaptable up and comer.

After a brief but amusing role as the pirate wench Anamaria in "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" (2003), Saldana was showcased nicely in director Steven Spielberg's "The Terminal" (2004), starring as an airport security worker who is wooed by a co-worker (Diego Luna) through a stranded immigrant (Tom Hanks) forced to reside in the terminal. In “Guess Who?” (2005), a loose remake of the racy romantic comedy “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” (1967), she played the young woman who brings her boyfriend (Ashton Kutcher), an up-and-comer on Wall Street, to her parent’s 25th wedding anniversary party. Her father (Bernie Mac) takes an instant disliking to the yuppie white boy and challenges the relationship at every turn. She breezed through her next film, “Dirty Deeds” (2005), yet another raunchy teen comedy; this time about ten raucous dirty deeds—performed before homecoming weekend as an annual male right-of-passage. As a guaranteed fast track out of the raunchy comedy rut, Saldana made international news for her casting as the iconic female officer of the Starship Enterprise, communications officer, Lt. Uhura in JJ Abrams' reimagining of the highly anticipated "Star Trek" film franchise.