Lucy Lawless (born Lucille Frances Ryan on March 29, 1968 in Mount Albert) is a New Zealand actress and singer best known for her role as Xena on the television series Xena: Warrior Princess from 1995 to 2001.
In 1997, Lawless was named one of the "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" by People magazine. Days earlier on 6 May 1997, Lawless inadvertently exposed one of her breasts as she concluded a performance of the US national anthem at an NHL hockey game in Anaheim, California between the Mighty Ducks and Detroit Red Wings. Lawless was quoted in Newsweek as saying "Obviously, I was mortified... It was quite a bit more exposure than I want."
Lawless has since appeared onstage in the Vagina Monologues, and as a television guest star in episodes of The X-Files, Just Shoot Me!, The Bernie Mac Show, Two and a Half Men, and Veronica Mars. She was also featured in the short-lived television series Tarzan. Lawless has made cameo appearances in the movies EuroTrip, Spider-Man, and the horror film Boogeyman. She returned to television to battle bugs in the TV movie Locusts! and its sequel Vampire Bats.
