Zoe Saldaña Says She Made It Her 'Mission' to Help New Lioness Costar Genesis Rodriguez 'Shine' (Exclusive)

Zoe Saldaña works to empower others.

Lioness returned last weekend for a second season, starring Zoe Saldaña, Nicole Kidman and Morgan Freeman. New cast member Genesis Rodriguez has also been welcomed into the fold, making her debut as Captain Josephina Carrillo, or “Josie,” a sharp helicopter pilot with a mysterious past.

While Josie and Saldaña’s character, Joe, initially clash, the actresses share a friendly bond in real life. Part of that has to do with Saldana’s long-standing, deeply rooted work philosophy.

“My mission is to genuinely cheer for people,” Saldaña, 46, tells PEOPLE. “There is room for all to shine. And the level of support I like to provide to my co-workers, colleagues and superiors, you do. Because you know if you do, they’ll pay it forward and you’ll receive it in your time of greatest need.”

Zoe Saldaña says she took the role Lioness for ‘solving my dyslexia and anxiety’ (exclusive)

Genesis Rodriguez in the second season of ‘Lioness’.

Parrmount+

Rodriguez, for her part, admits she’s been a “fan” of Saldana “for so long.”

“We met once … it’s not like she even knew who I was – she recognized my dad,” says Rodriguez, 37, referring to singer José Luis Rodriguez. “They had a really nice moment, and my dad said, ‘And this is my daughter.’ He introduced me. And then after that, we had another meeting, and I said, ‘I hope to work with you one day. It’s a really big dream of mine.’ And we manifested that.”

Working on the series in general was something of a dream for Rodriguez, who previously appeared in Umbrella Academy, Identity Thief and voiced by Honey Lemon Big hero 6.

Some actors may seek solo time when the cameras stop rolling, but Rodriguez admits that Lioness costars spent a lot of time together. “What’s nice about this cast is that we hang out every weekend — every weekend — and that’s unusual for any work,” explains the actress.

Dave Annable on how he got Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Special Ops: Lioness’: ‘I Have a Face He Wants to Kill’ (Exclusive)

Bruce McGill, Jennifer Ehle, Morgan Freeman, Michael Kelly and Nicole Kidman in the second season of ‘Lioness’.

Ryan Green/Paramount+

“Imagine that you go to work and you don’t want to see your colleagues. But here, I just wanted to be with them the whole time like, ‘Where are we going? Shall we go to the pool? Shall we go to this barbecue?'” she continues. “It’s always nerve-wracking joining a new group of people you don’t know, but this really is the best cast and I’ve been very lucky.”

In addition to Saldaña, Kidman, Freeman and Rodriguez, Lioness’ the cast includes Michael Kelly, Laysla De Oliveira, Jill Wagner, LaMonica Garrett, Jennifer Ehle, James Jordan, Austin Hébert, Jonah Wharton, Bruce McGill and Thad Luckinbill.

Saldaña, Kidman and Wagner also executive produce, alongside creator Taylor Sheridan, David C. Glasser, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, David Hutkin, David Lemanowicz, Geyer Kosinski, Michael Friedman and Keith Cox.

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

New episodes Lioness drop Sundays on Paramount+.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education