Xena is a fictional character from Robert Tapert's Xena: Warrior Princess franchise, portrayed by New Zealand actress Lucy Lawless and co-created by Tapert and John Schulian. She first appeared as a villain in the 1995–1999 television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys before joining forces with Hercules. Xena was popular with fans, so the producers decided to create a spin-off with the character in the starring role. She later appeared in the subsequent comic book of the same name, as well as the spin-off animated film The Battle for Mount Olympus, and non-canon expanded universe material, such as books and video games.
Xena: Warrior Princess is an American fantasy television series filmed on location in New Zealand. The series aired in first-run syndication from September 4, 1995, to June 18, 2001. Critics have praised the series for its strong female protagonist, and it has acquired a strong cult following, attention in fandom, parody, and academia, and has influenced the direction of other television series.
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys is an American television series filmed in New Zealand, based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles. Starring Kevin Sorbo as Hercules and Michael Hurst as Iolaus, it was produced from January 16, 1995, to November 22, 1999. It ran for six seasons, producing action figures and other memorabilia as it became one of the highest-rated syndicated television shows in the world at that time. It has aired on Once Channel, Sky1, five/5, Heroes & Icons, and Horror.
Kevin David Sorbo is an American actor and producer. He had starring roles in two television series as Hercules in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys (1995–1999), and as Captain Dylan Hunt in Andromeda (2000–2005). Sorbo is also known for acting in Christian films such as God's Not Dead (2014) and Let There Be Light (2017).
Lucille Frances Lawless is a New Zealand actress. She is best known for her roles as Xena in the television series Xena: Warrior Princess, as D'Anna Biers on the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica series, and Lucretia in the television series Spartacus: Blood and Sand and associated series. Since 2019, she has starred as Alexa in the television series My Life Is Murder.
Gabrielle is a fictional character played by Renee O'Connor in the American fantasy TV series Xena: Warrior Princess (1995–2001). She is referred to by fans as the Battling Bard of Potidaea. Her trademark weapons are the Amazon fighting staff and later, the sais. She was also an Amazon Princess and later an Amazon Queen. The character's development and progression is a story that spans the entire show's run, with her first appearance in "Sins of the Past" seeing her as a naive farm girl, and the final episode, "A Friend In Need ", seeing her as a fully formed but rational warrior, set to follow in Xena's footsteps.
Heidi Hudson Leick is an American actress, known for her role as villainess Callisto in the television series Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. She is also a certified Yoga instructor and intuitive counselor.
Stephen Lovatt is a New Zealand actor, best known internationally for his portrayal of character Max Hoyland on the Australian soap Neighbours.
Joseph LoDuca is an American television and film score composer best known for his work writing television scores for the series Spartacus, Leverage, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Xena: Warrior Princess, Young Hercules, The Librarians TV series, American Gothic and Jack of All Trades. Originally an accomplished jazz guitarist in the Detroit area, LoDuca frequently provides music for producer/director Robert Tapert, producer/director Sam Raimi, producer/director Dean Devlin and actor Bruce Campbell's films and series. Prior to his work on The Evil Dead, his first film, he released a jazz LP titled Glisten.
Robert Trebor is an American character actor, known for starring as Salmoneus in the television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess.
Roar is a fantasy adventure television series created by Shaun Cassidy and Ron Koslow. The series originally aired on the Fox network from July 14 until September 1, 1997. It is set in the year 400 AD, following a young Irish man, Conor, as he sets out to rid his land of the invading Romans, but in order to accomplish this, he must first unite the Celtic clans. The series also starred Vera Farmiga, Lisa Zane, John Saint Ryan, and Sebastian Roché. Roar was cancelled after 8 episodes due to low ratings, and the final 5 episodes were not broadcast by the network until 2000.
Caleb Ross is a New Zealand film and television actor best known for his role as Lex in the cult science fiction television series The Tribe. In 1998, he played Logan Patterson on Shortland Street. Throughout the years, he has appeared in Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Mercy Peak and Revelations - The Initial Journey.
Action Pack, also called Universal Action Pack, was a syndicated programming block series of television movies and television series created by Universal Television that aired from 1994 until 2001. The Action Pack included two hours of various television series produced by Renaissance Pictures and distributed by MCA TV.
Amy Morrison is a New Zealand-born film and television actress best known for her role as Zandra in Cloud 9's The Tribe. She also had a brief but memorable role the historical fantasy series Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys as the younger version of Hope, the daughter of Gabrielle. Morrison has also played small roles in feature films Jack Be Nimble and Every Woman's Dream as well as appearances on Jack of All Trades, Shortland Street and William Shatner's A Twist in the Tale among other work in television and film.
Viking Quest is a fictional TV show within a show in the TV series Entourage. It is referred to both by fictional characters and celebrities playing versions of themselves as a real show.
Liz Friedman is an American television producer and television writer known especially for her work on Xena: Warrior Princess, Young Hercules, House and Jessica Jones. In 2014, she was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for co-writing the pilot episode of Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black.
Xena: Warrior Princess has been referred to as a pop cultural phenomenon and feminist and lesbian icon. The television series, which employed pop culture references as a frequent humorous device, has itself become a frequent pop culture reference in video games, comics and television shows, and has been frequently parodied and spoofed.
The first season of the television series Xena: Warrior Princess commenced airing in the United States and Canada on September 4, 1995, concluded on July 29, 1996, and contained 24 episodes. It introduces Gabrielle, the series co-star, beside Xena, previously a secondary character in the TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Gabrielle becomes Xena's greatest ally; her initial naiveté helps to balance Xena and assists her in recognizing and pursuing the "greater good."
Mark Ferguson is a New Zealand-based Australian actor and television presenter.
