Summary
It has been decades sinceXena: Warrior Princessended, but Lucy Lawless is still conflicted about her character’s death. The show was a spin-off of 1995’sHercules: The Legendary Journeysand ran from 1995 to 2001. It was created by Robert Tapert and produced by R. J. Stewart and Sam Raimi. The lead character, Xena, spends the show hoping to redeem her horrific past actions and finally earns redemption by sacrificing her life in an epic climactic scene.Xena’s controversial tragic endingremains a problem for the series, however.
For Lawless, the problem is that they refused to listen to the viewers. In an exclusive interview withScreen Rant, Lawless opened up about her struggles with Xena’s death.She wishes that they never killed Xena, as she failed to consider how the audience would enjoy the show’s conclusion and the effect that it would have onWarrior Princess' legacy. Check out her quote below:
No, I wish we never killed her. This is the problem.We weren’t thinking about the fans.We were just like, “What’s a really strong choice for the series? What’s dramatically the strongest choice?” But I regret that. AndI regretted it quite soon afterwardbecause we didn’t understand what we were doing to the fans, and now I do. Now in my line of work, or if I’m directing, every single shot is with the audience in mind. Not just their sort of emotional well-being, but keeping them excited and on the edge of their seats is the name of the game. I just regret that we did that.
Xena’s Death Remains Controversial Even Today
Xena’s Fate Continues To Mar The Show’s Legacy
When she first appeared inHercules: The Legendary Journeys,Xena was always meant to die. The character was created simply to serve Hercules' development and had little hope of leading a spin-off of her own. It was only after the producers saw her popularity that they elected to use her as a lead character. That her show would end with Xena dying is only fitting, considering that. After six seasons of witnessing Xena’s harrowing journey, however, Lawless believes that her death was no longer necessary.
The show’s ending saw Xena dying and refusing revival. She chose to remain dead after learning that it would free 40,000 souls that she had accidentally killed.Audiences had never been introduced to those 40,000 souls before, nor to the demon who was tormenting them. It made the ending even less tolerable, asXena died for a causethat many had never even known about. It plays into Lawless' point that the audience’s true response was never considered. There was an attemptedWarrior Princessreboot, which might have rectified the lackluster ending, but it never materialized.
Why The Xena: Warrior Princess Reboot With Lucy Lawless Was Canceled
Xena: Warrior Princess is a classic of 1990s pop culture, but star Lucy Lawless almost returned for a canceled reboot of the show in the 2010s.
Without space for a reboot, revival, or sequel, the two-part finale was lackluster to Lawless. Xena’s final sacrifice was emotionally uninteresting, given that audiences had no reason to connect the 40,000 souls to Xena throughout the show. While her partner, Gabrielle, might have chosen to continue the story and make Xena’s sacrifice more effective, she never had the space to tell her own story. By killing Xena,Xena: Warrior Princessensured that few viewers would ever be satisfied by the ending.
Xena: Warrior Princess
Cast
Staring Lucy Lawless and Renne O’Connor, Xena: Warrior Princess follows the titular heroine, a formidable female warrior from Ancient Greece who uses her powers to help protect and defend the innocent. Xena is accompanied by her sidekick, Gabrielle, on all of her missions. The series ran from 1995 to 2001, and maintains cult classic status and a devoted fanbase to this day.
