Reading the “Star Trek” script, however, Saldana was able to find a rationality that suited the characters. Uhura is confident, “a swagger to her that was quite sensual but confident (…) She was definitely a very determined and very strong woman and she really wanted to stay in that enterprise and become a xenolinguistics expert because she Like. Five years old,” opined Saldana. She’s drawn to Spock, who despite his emotionless facade is more sensitive than Kirk.
“(Spock is) half-human, half-Vulcan, if he was only going to be a Vulcan man, why make him half-human? You’re constantly waiting for him to break. That’s the battle that makes Spock. Who he is. .”
No matter the century, women never stop thinking, “I can fix that.”
Even the late Nichelle Nichols was split on the decision. On the one hand, it was not consistent with the character she played and she said in a 2014 Reddit Ask Me Anything:
“(Spock and Uhura) wouldn’t have happened back in the original series, Uhura was a private person with a private life separate from the rest of the crew (…) as any serious fan who watched the original series would know. Couldn’t be, they’d laugh their heads off.”
However, during a 2010 fan Q&A published by StarTrek.com, Nichols admitted that Saldana Uhura was young and on her first high-altitude mission. Such experiences get the emotions and adrenaline flowing. She also felt it made sense because both Spock and Uhura are serious and private people. Only they can open for each other:
“(Uhura) shone (Kirk) off, but Spock attracted her, her serious side. Now, this is me building my story on what happened, but he saw her human side in her and she touched a side of him that believed comes. Wise about.”
