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Lucy Lawless on directorial debut and how Xena and Gabrielle were ‘totally’ a couple (exclusive)

The Xena: Warrior Princess star's new movie Never Look Away chronicles the story of remarkable war journalist Margaret Moth

By Dale Fox

Composite of Lucy Lawless Margaret Moth
Lucy Lawless (left) and Margaret Moth (Image: Provided)

Xena: Warrior Princess star Lucy Lawless has made her directorial debut with the movie Never Look Away, in cinemas today (2 December).

The film tells the extraordinary story of the late CNN war journalist Margaret Moth, whose dedication to documenting the plights of war victims took her to some of the most dangerous conflict zones in the world.

Even after surviving a near-fatal shooting that left her with severe facial injuries and required extensive reconstructive surgery, Moth returned to the frontlines, capturing humanity at its worst with her commitment to truth and become a role model of female empowerment.

In this exclusive interview, Lawless talks wearing her Xena armour to go to the ATM, becoming a lesbian role model, and how Moth’s story serves as inspiration for reaching our potential.

What are your best memories of making Xena: Warrior Princess?

It was shot outside and it was a very colourful, fanciful show and we were all kids in our 20s. It suits the New Zealand mentality to be the underdog, and we had less money than our parent show, Hercules. We were less resourced, but that thrilled us. We just had a great time and laughed our heads off through the six years of filming the show.

What was the campest thing you did on Xena?

I mean, the whole of Xena is an ode to camp – I was an aide-de-camp through every season. Maybe when I played the part of Miss Amphipolis in a beauty contest (in the series 2, episode 11 episode Here She Comes … Miss Amphipolis) when I was caught in an embrace with the winner. The trans actress who played her (Karen Dior, who passed away in 2004) was beautiful and such a lovely soul.

You were in The Simpsons in the 90s too. What was that like?

The Simpsons was one of those pinch-me moments, when you see yourself in yellow. The character was Xena and Lucy Lawless – they actually used my name. I was like, “Oh my God – Bart and Lisa are saying my name!” And the Comic Book Guy’s collected me and wrapped me in Mylar like an uber comic fan. I was very lucky to be a part of other cult 90s shows like Celebrity Deathmatch and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

How did they make your character fly in The Simpsons?

Easy – they drew from life. Or a wizard did it!

You became a lesbian role model from Xena. How did that feel?

The New York gay scene gave Xena its early edge. They made us hip first, and I’m immensely grateful for that. Michael Musto wrote an article about the show – what a lovely man.

To settle years of fan speculation, were Xena and Gabrielle a couple?

Yeah – I thought that was quite clear by the end. We didn’t know that was the case when we began the show. But by the end, we were like: totally; they’re a couple; they’re married. I guess Xena was still experimenting in the first few seasons. I mean, she’d had Marcus as a boyfriend.

Looking back, Xena: Warrior Princess was actually quite ahead of the times.

This inclusivity that everyone’s aspiring to now, we were doing that way back in the 90s. Because we were shooting so far from Hollywood, far away from the bosses, everyone just left us alone. We had trans actors who weren’t playing trans roles. We had mixed-race couples, and even mixed-species relationships as a metaphor. There was an odd flirtation with a Centaur, which may have gone too far, but you would, wouldn’t ya?

What would Xena and Gabrielle be doing today if they were still around?

They’d have a B&B in Lesbos or something. Running the Lilleth Fair or Miss Sappho 2024. Xena would rock out a few lines of consciousness girl power verse; throw a few axes.

Did you get to keep any of your Xena wardrobe?

I did keep a few things. I wore my full Xena wardbrobe in public going to the ATM once during filming. This was before Xena was well known. I rocked into downtown Auckland in my full Xena garb.

You’ve made your directorial debut with Never Look Away about the late war journalist Margaret Moth. What do you admire about her as a woman?

She overcame tremendous adversity to reach a potential nobody could ever have guessed she had. This is a woman who lived a life of complete excess and hedonism up until she went off to war and she is shot by a sniper while driving to work with the rest of the crew in Sarajevo in 1992 and gets her jaw blown off. She loses her teeth and much of her tongue and her ability to speak, to eat. But she fights back and goes back to war and shoots for another 16 years – the stories of the children, the innocent, the non-combatant victims of war.

How has Margaret Moth’s story inspired you personally?

Margaret Moth stands in front of a large explosion
Margaret Moth (Image: Provided)

It is inspiring, because if she did all of that when so much had been ripped away from here, then who am I not to go out there and reach that little bit higher for the thing that I most desire? It’s about reaching your potential, and it’s also about the cost of news gathering. A lot of people throw mud at mainstream media these days, but these people are facing permanent danger on the front lines to bring the stories of the powerless, who through no fault of their own are facing the ravages of war, displacement, maiming, loss of their children. It’s disgusting, and I hate to see those news gatherers being reviled. They are heroes.

Never Look Away is showing in UK cinemas for one-night-only special screenings on 2 December and on digital platforms from 6 January.

Book cinema tickets at Light Cinemas, Peckhamplex and Corn Exchange Wallingford.