August 2019 Archives

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TV Soap
19 August 2019

Intrepid investigator Alexa Crowe goes undercover to flush out a killer who struck in a restaurant

Murder leaves a foul taste, as Alexa (Lucy Lawless) discovers when she’s assigned the case of the cooking school killer!

As anyone who’s watched MasterChef knows, the intense world of culinary excellence is intense, motivating Alexa to dig deeper and grill the suspects to nd out who made mincemeat of a promising young chef.

Going undercover in the kitchen, Alexa’s suspicions land on Brenda (Lisa Hensley), the main instructor. Brenda’s very

exacting in the standards she demands of all her students – and it appears she may have burned one of them once too often...

As Alexa sifts through the ingredients for the truth, she uncovers a soup of lies, blackmail and reinvention. All these clues eventually lead to the killer, but the only problem is Alexa’s more interested in the gelatine infusion setting before her eyes… and that could blow the lid off her investigation!

Xena Warrior Princess has been a beloved character on television and the printed page for years. The cult show starring Lucy Lawless impacted viewers young and old, especially young girls who finally had an iconic character to emulate. She was strong, fierce, and completely at ease with being herself, finally giving many the representation they needed. Love for the character continues thanks to Dynamite Comics and their line of comics starring Xena and her ever-loyal companion Gabrielle. Xena Vol. 2: Mind Games is one such example.

In this 120-page trade paperback, a new adventure begins. A young girl flees for her life and from her parents. Xena and Gabrielle must determine if the girl is a visionary or a demon. Unfortunately for everyone, the Oracles of Delphi have already decided, and what does that mean for our favorite heroines?

The story is brought to you by writer Erica Schultz (Charmed, M3, Twelve Devils Dancing) and artist Vicente Cifuentes (Aquaman). The trade also features a cover by Sergio Davila.

The book is slated for release on Wednesday August 14. Grab your copy at your favorite local comic shop or head over to Dynamite’s website to place an order. Check out the complete first chapter of Xena Vol. 2: Mind Games here.

Source: https://www.comicsbeat.com/exclusive-preview-xena-vol-2-mind-games-trade-paperback/

Lucy has got a guest starring (recurring) role in the animated Star Wars: Resistance series (which also features Spartacus alum, Liam McIntyre). Lucy's role is that of the Aeosian Queen.

Aeosians were a sentient species that lived in the galaxy. They were ruled by a queen. During the First Order–Resistance war, representatives of the Colossus including Kazuda Xiono and Griff Halloran met with their ruler. [via Wookieepedia]

Kaz and the team continue to fight against the threat of the First Order, culminating in an epic series finale. The story picks up after a harrowing escape from the First Order, as the Colossus and all its residents find themselves lost in space, pursued by Agent Tierny and Commander Pyre…meanwhile, Tam grapples with her future and where her true allegiance lies, with her friends or the First Order. The thrilling final season will showcase how the unlikeliest of heroes can help spark hope across the galaxy.

Joining the voice cast in guest-starring roles for Season Two: Joe Manganiello (Magic Mike) as Ax Tagrin, Daveed Diggs (Hamilton) as Norath Kev, and Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess) as the Aeosian Queen.

Star Wars Resistance stars Christopher Sean (Days of Our Lives) as Kazuda Xiono, Suzie McGrath (East Enders) as Tam Ryvora, Scott Lawrence (Legion) as Jarek Yeager, Myrna Velasco (Elena of Avalor) as Torra Doza, Josh Brener (Silicon Valley) as Neeku Vozo, Donald Faison (Scrubs) as Hype Fazon, Elijah Wood (The Lord of The Rings) as Rucklin, Liam McIntyre (Spartacus) as Commander Pyre, Jason Hightower (Victor & Valentino) as Captain Doza, Sumalee Montano (Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny) as Agent Tierny, and Jim Rash (Community) and Bobby Moynihan (DuckTales) as Flix and Orka, respectively.

Mindfood Magazine

01 August 2019 Issue

Fighting The Good Fight

Written by Charles Parcell

She is best known for her breakout part, the feminist icon Xena: Warrior Princess. Now, actor Lucy Lawless is enjoying playing an ex-detective helping to clear the streets of Melbourne of bad guys while hanging out with middle-aged men in lycra.

Lucy Lawless is recovering from a cold. Fresh from fighting crime on the mean (and terribly chic) streets of Melbourne in her new dramedy My Life Is Murder, the star says she caught the “obligatory post-production cold”.

Crimefighting is actually good for one’s health, she claims. It’s when you stop that the ‘lurgies’ actually hit you.

I sympathise. No-one thinks about what happens to these heroes and heroines after they’ve had their adventures, do they?

“I know. You’re not thinking about us at all,” she laughs.

For example, one would hope Xena: Warrior Princess – the iconic role that Lawless is indelibly connected to – might have retired with her sidekick Gabrielle at the end of her adventures. Perhaps to grow organic produce on a farm somewhere? Instead, the female role model to millions of fans died in a grisly manner.

“But we’re not allowed to talk about that because it upsets the fans so badly. Which is understandable.” Unlike Xena, Lawless’s career is again on the rise as she plays the complex, contrary and compelling investigator Alexa Crowe in My Life Is Murder.

Following the death of her husband, Alexa has retired from the police force, but is called back by her former colleague, Detective Inspector Kieran Hussey (Bernard Curry), to investigate crimes the police can’t – or won’t – solve.

“I appear to have entered the ‘Miss Marple’ phase of an actress’s career. It’s partly my own doing because I’m a lover of true crime and law. In between jobs, I go and sit in the courthouse and watch the murder trials.”

Is that a joke?

“No, it’s true. If I find myself with a few days off, that’s where I can often be found.” The crimes in her six-part series take place in some unusual locales: everything from the world of male escorts and cooking schools to the world of the ‘MAMIL’: the “middle-aged man in lycra”.

“Yes – I had never heard that term, but it’s real, isn’t it? With men in lycra, we get to discover something about what turns my character on.” Intriguing.

Lawless raves about her co-stars: “the wonderful Bernard Curry, who is such a divine fellow”, as well as Ebony Vagulans – “I think she is such a star and the minute I met her, I knew she was the right girl to play [data analyst] Madison”. Lawless also fell in love with the city of Melbourne itself, with all its great buildings and public art. But now, the star of stage and screen is back home in New Zealand and sitting out on the steps in the cool winter sun as we speak.

New Zealand enjoys an international reputation for being an unspoiled paradise removed from the troubles of the world, but it has seen its share of suffering lately. “Christchurch has been through a great deal,” agrees Lawless. “Earthquakes and instability and what that does to a community. Insurance nightmares and then the mass murder of 50 innocent people minding their own business.

“I think it opened up a much better dialogue between New Zealanders of all faiths, if you’re to look for a silver lining from a really dark cloud.”

Are New Zealanders resilient? “I think all humans are resilient, but you never know until you’re tested. That one scarred us pretty bad.”

Today, the former warrior princess is fighting to save the planet as a climate ambassador for Greenpeace, spreading the world about climate change.

“For 30 years I have known about what’s coming, but it’s just been hushed up. I’m glad that your average person is starting to understand it a little, understand what climate change means … more frequent and more ferocious catastrophic events and that it can touch all of us and challenge all of our society structures, redefine boundaries of countries and statehood and cause untold refugees. It’s a very, very serious conundrum.”

Lucy’s Fascination With Crime and Justice

New Zealand Herald
7 August 2019

Written by Mark Kennedy
Associated Press

The next time you find yourself in a courtroom, look around. There’s a chance you might spot Lucy Lawless there, too.

The actress is fascinated by trials and on days when she’s not working will often go to court as a member of the public.

“It just teaches you so much about life and your own society and justice and about yourself,” says Lawless.

Lawless, 51, attended a murder trial in New Zealand, jury selection for a grisly case in Louisiana and was at Jeffrey Epstein’s bail hearing in New York last month when the financier faced sex trafficking charges.

On that rainy day, she watched Epstein “shamble in”, acting shaky. “Sedate is not the right word. It was sombre. And methodical. And meticulous. And all over in 20 minutes,” she says.

Lawless’ fascination with crime has filtered into her latest project, the new crime TV series My Life is

Murder, coming soon to TVNZ. “This much more closely mirrors my own personal interests,” she says.

Lawless plays Alexa Crowe, an exhomicide detective who bakes bread, loves Crowded House, speaks German and corrects people’s grammar when she’s not chasing baddies. She is a fully realised modern woman — unfiltered, sexy, funny and prone to giving advice.

In a typical scene, a villain holding a knife orders Alexa to stand up. “Get up slow,” he snarls. She responds calmly: “I think you’ll find ‘slowly’ is the adverb.”

There are differences between Alexa and Lawless. One is the character’s love of bread, which on the show is a symbol of new life. Lawless is gluten intolerant.

“It’s kind of a joke that I’m always up to my elbows in flour. But I sure

earned my intolerance. For 40 years, I ate bread like a mad thing and I know what it tastes like alright.”

The show, set in Melbourne, Australia, explores closed worlds — undertakers, models, escorts and even bicyclist enthusiasts nicknamed MAMILs (middle-aged men in Lycra). The show also tweaks conventions, casting a woman as a mob boss or making Alexa’s neighbour a millennial rather than a crusty older woman.

“I just want to give people a little psychic holiday from all the grim stuff so they can recharge the batteries and go back out there and fight the good fight,” Lawless said.

Creator Claire Tonkin wrote Alexa with Lawless in mind. “There’s a lot of me in the character and that’s the advantage of having writers build something around you. I’m a very lucky woman,” says Lawless.

Matthew Graham, the general manager of Acorn TV, which specialises in offering British and Australian TV shows, says Lawless’ show continues the push for strong, relatable female leads.

“We love Lucy Lawless. We love her strength, her vivaciousness, her intelligence and her sense of humour. We think that My Life is Murder is the perfect vehicle to showcase all of that,” he says.

Lawless’ strength and humour were present when she burst into the public’s consciousness as Xena in a show that mixed dark mythology, action, campy humour and sly sexuality. It aired from 1995 to 2001.

“It was fun. It was about universal themes, of the triumph of the human spirit: love, courage and, of course, hate and fear underneath that,” Lawless says.

Lawless constantly hears from fans about how the show empowered them, especially from people who feel marginalised — minorities, invalids, and gay men and women. She once asked an African-American woman why it resonated with black women. That woman’s response: “African-American women feel that they need to be warrior women every day of their lives.”

Activism is something she takes seriously and calls the environment “my No. 1 commitment”. She was arrested in 2012 for protesting Arctic oil drilling with Greenpeace and says the movement needs to keep going.

“You get compassion fatigue. You go, ‘I’ve only got so much bandwidth, and this is making my heart hurt’ and the world’s really heart-hurty right now,” she said.

“So to keep us buoyant, we’ve got to start hearing about the great innovations and people who are doing good work and there’s tons of it out there.”

With My Life is Murder going to air in the US (on Acorn TV), the media blitz for Lucy’s new show just hit overdrive. Here’s a list of articles and interviews:

LA Times: ‘Xena’ star Lucy Lawless is more Angela Lansbury than ‘warrior princess’ in ‘My Life Is Murder’
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2019-08-05/xena-lucy-lawless-my-life-is-murder-acorn-tv

Parade: Lucy Lawless on Her New Series My Life is Murder and Fitting Into her Xena: Warrior PrincessCostume for the 25th Anniversary - https://parade.com/907930/paulettecohn/lucy-lawless-on-her-new-series-my-life-is-murder-and-fitting-into-her-xena-warrior-princess-costume-for-the-25th-anniversary/

Hidden Remove: 5 reasons to watch My Life Is Murder on Acorn TV
https://hiddenremote.com/2019/08/04/watch-my-life-is-murder-acorn-tv-2/

Decider: Lucy Lawless Discusses Her New Acorn TV Show, Getting Recognized and (of Course) Xena
https://decider.com/2019/08/05/lucy-lawless-interview-my-life-is-murder-xena/?utm_medium=SocialFlow&utm_source=DeciderTwitter&utm_campaign=SocialFlow

ABC News: Lucy Lawless' love of true crime leads to new TV show
https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/lucy-lawless-love-true-crime-leads-tv-show-64732972

KBCChannel.TV: Xena’s Lucy Lawless on Returning to TV to Solve Murder and Her Desire to Pick Up the Chakram One Last Time

https://www.kbcchannel.tv/entertainment/xenas-lucy-lawless-on-returning-to-tv-to-solve-murder-and-her-desire-to-pick-up-the-chakram-one-last-time/

Parade has an interview with Lucy about her show "My Life is Murder" and it veers into the upcoming 25th Anniversary of Xena in 2020...

Next year is the 25th anniversary of the release of Xena: Warrior Princess. What do you have planned?

I am planning to develop something with my very dear friends, Renée O’Connor and Tim Omundson. Hopefully, we can get Ted Raimi there. We’ll just see who’s available. That seems like a long way off, but certainly Renée and I have talked about doing something a little bit special for old time’s sake. This was the place where the fans first came together. So, just for one more time, we’ll get the band back together. Have a party.

It has been announced that there is a 25th Anniversary Xena Convention in Los Angeles.

I know. I talk to one of the organizers all the time. I’ve known them a really long time. They were the first ones to do a convention, so, it’s just a little promise that you make to the fans to honor them, really. They’re a force for good in the community, and I respect them.

When you first filmed, did you have any idea that it would have this life to it, that in 2019, people still love the show?

No. I couldn’t have imagined that. In fact, even today, people are saying things like that to me, and I do that sort of cartoon double take, like, “Really?” Because if you’re in the middle of it, and you’re part of the mechanism that makes the show, you’re not thinking about the way it’s received, or that the characters seem to be real to other people, which is kind of staggering.

And remember, I don’t live in fandom. I have three kids, and they’re superstars to me. So, they’re my heroes. I’m focused on that more than the fruits of my labor.

Are you going to have to get into Xena shape to get back in the outfit for this anniversary?

Oh, my God. I didn’t even think of that. Now, that’d be a great surprise wouldn’t it? I tell you, I work really, really hard to just be in shape at every time in my life. I go to yoga and try to keep my steps up above 6,000 or 10,000 a day. I find that it’s harder and harder to maintain your shape at 50, but I’m doing what I can, and I feel proud of myself. I started out doing yoga when I was about 20, and I thought, “One day when I’m an older woman, I’m going to be so glad that I started this,” and suddenly, I find I am that older woman, and I am so glad that 20-year-old me made that decision. You’ve got to play the long game.

I think of Xena as the precursor to all these wonderful, strong women characters we have now, like Wonder Woman.

She was the first in network television, even though we were syndicated, and because there was some high camp going on, she never quite got the respect of a lot of people, which is possibly why she doesn’t get credited, but the fans still love her as you said, and have given her great legs. So, huzzah. I’m delighted. Mustn’t grumble.

Read the full interview here

#MyLifeisMurder S1 Ep 4: Can't Stand the Heat Alexa is thrown into the world of culinary excellence while investigating the death of a cooking school student. Alexa must hone her chops to uncover a tangled web of lies, rivalry and secrets.

More about My Life is Murder on the AUSXIP My Life is Murder subsite: mylifeismurder.lucylawless.net

Official Promo Image

The following snippet is from the New Zealand Woman’s Weekly 5 August 2019 Issue

The No Worries Warrior

Kiwi star Lucy Lawless (51) looked gorgeous in green for her recent

Build Series interview. The actress chatted about playing Xena in the hit ‘90s show for six seasons, saying her inspiration for the character was Ripley from the Alien movies. “Interestingly enough, when we started making Xena, the French syndicators were like, ‘The French will never accept a female warrior!’ I was like, ‘Joan of Arc?’” laughs Lucy.

Find out more about Lucy's role on My Life is Murder by going to the AUSXIP My Life is Murder subsite

L UCY Lawless says “serendipity” brought her back to TV as crimesolver Alexa Crowe in “My Life Is Murder,” premiering Aug. 5 on Acorn TV.

“I was in New Zealand raising my kids, and now that my kids don’t seem to need me in the same way, the time was right,” says Lawless, 51, who shot the 10-episode series on location in Melbourne, Australia. “[Series executive producer] Claire Tonkin contacted me on the day that I happened to be in Sydney for Gay Pride. I said, ‘You’ve got an hour and a half on Sunday if you want to meet.’ She was the right person at the right time with the right idea and it was time for me to step up. And I was close to home if my [17-yearold] son needed me.”

In the series, Alexa is an investigator who left the Melbourne police department following the death of her husband. Content with baking bread at home, she’s unofficially recruited back into action by her former boss, Detective Inspector Keiran Hussy (Bernard Curry), who teams her with ambitious upstart Madison Feliciano (Ebony Vagulans) to help solve puzzling murders. Their pairing adds a touch of whimsy to the series since they’re both obsessive — Alexa over her new German breadmaking machine and Madison over her high-tech vacuum cleaner. “Alexa has been hiding from the world baking bread, which is kind of a metaphor for a new life and doing something organic and wholesome,” says Lawless. “She has not progressed since her husband died and she went into a bit of a grief hole. Ironically, it’s getting involved with murderers again that brings her back to life ... so she can climb out and process her grief properly. “And Madison is in love with her vacuum cleaner,” she says. “When we were developing the story I was like, ‘C’mon, we can’t have two women in love with their machines!’ They were like, ‘No, this is great [for] the lean-in factor.’ There are little curious things that make you go towards the show because they’re peculiar, but believable.”

Lawless, a New Zealand native, shot to fame nearly 25 years ago as “Xena: Warrior Princess” (1995-2001), and says there are similarities to that series in Alexa’s relationship with Madison and Xena’s friendship with sidekick Gabrielle (Renee O’Connor).

“The thing that differentiates Alexa from any other character I’ve played is that she’s sexually quite liberated,” says Lawless. “Her first murder case [in the series opener] involves a rent boy and there’s a kind of ‘will she or won’t she?’ effect. But I do see parallels with ‘Xena’ in that Madison is totally my sidekick, like Gabrielle, so there’s a ‘girl power’ element.”

Lawless says she’s open to the idea of resurrecting “Xena” — but it won’t involve her husband, series co-creator Rob Tapert. “Look, they tried to do it and get my husband in on it but he said ‘I honestly cannot think of a way to do it better than I already did it’ ... He’s afraid he’s going to make some really sh---y version,” she says. “I made this comment during an interview like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it!’ and got like 100 e-mails: ‘Give us a call!’

“I did see a promo with Linda Hamilton for the reboot of ‘Terminator’ and I was like, ‘Yes! They nailed it!’ It was admiration and jealousy and I was like, why are they not doing that with Xena? Bring back me and Renee as the ages we are now and hand the baton over. I’m not signing a six-year [TV] contract to play Xena, but as a movie? Great!”

Cycling groups are the ultimate opportunity for networking and power broking. But when the CFO of a hospitality empire dies on his morning ride, Alexa must infiltrate the world of lycra and butt pads.

Do not. We repeat. DO NOT TALK BADLY ABOUT ALEXA'S BREAD. #MyLifeIsMurder | 9.10 tonight on 10 pic.twitter.com/f9fk2hQF5J

— Channel 10 (@Channel10AU) July 31, 2019

We all have that one friend who always says "It's 12-o-clock somewhere." #MyLifeIsMurder @RealLucyLawless @EbonyVagulans @bernardcurry pic.twitter.com/WLp6cpbyyt

— Channel 10 (@Channel10AU) July 31, 2019

Rolling into the living room ready to watch #MyLifeIsMurder with the family. #SquadGoals @RealLucyLawless @EbonyVagulans @bernardcurry pic.twitter.com/4ZEPJkzcfN

— Channel 10 (@Channel10AU) July 31, 2019

This shot couldn't be more Melbourne even if it tried... #MyLifeIsMurder@RealLucyLawless @EbonyVagulans @bernardcurry pic.twitter.com/aUF90lBWGo

— Channel 10 (@Channel10AU) July 31, 2019

CHOOSE YOUR FIGHTER.
TBH a rolling pin is a great choice. #MyLifeIsMurder@RealLucyLawless @EbonyVagulans @bernardcurry pic.twitter.com/JaIbYMKl4V

— Channel 10 (@Channel10AU) July 31, 2019