Xena: Warrior Nutballs

This week Lou and Shell go deep behind the scenes as we kōrero with legendary Aotearoa casting director Diana Rowan, who tells us exactly what she saw in Lucy Lawless which made her push for her to become Xena: Warrior Princess. 👀⚔️ AKA that “don’t fuck with me” energy she owns. 💜💪🌶️

Xenites, you might recognise Diana for another reason… she played The Shepherd in Xena: Warrior Princess Season 5, Episode 22, Motherhood! 🐑🏜️

But, Diana’s casting legacy goes WAY beyond Xena - She has been shaping New Zealand's screen industry for decades! Casting countless Kiwi performers, including Michael Hurst as Iolaus in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, and is the only casting director in the world to have cast multiple child actors who went on to receive Oscar nominations: Anna Paquin for The Piano (winning at just 11!) and Keisha Castle-Hughes for Whale Rider.

We talk about the building blocks of casting the right person for the role, and what it takes to spot a future star before everyone else does. ✨

Whānau, this interview is an absolute one-off, one-of-a-kind. Diana doesn’t do these, so we are bloody thrilled she chose to kōrero with us. 💜 

 

Follow Xena: Warrior Nutballs:
🌐 www.xenawarriornutballs.com 
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xenawarriornutballs/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578930248317

 

Come join our whānau! ⚔️💜

This week Lou and Shell are welcoming into the whānau Eric Gruendemann - Producer, Supervising Producer, Co-Executive Producer, and founder and Managing Director of Pacific Renaissance Pictures!🎬🌿⚔️😮‍💨 

 

Some people think the story of Xena: Warrior Princess begins with Hercules: The Legendary Journeys... but they'd be wrong. The real origin story starts years earlier, when Eric boarded a plane and headed to Aotearoa New Zealand to see if this small country at the bottom of the world could become home to an ambitious new television series.✈️

 

Eric didn't just help make a television show - he helped build an entire industry. 🎬💪 His vision and belief in Aotearoa put New Zealand on the map as a world-class television production destination, paving the way for countless international productions that followed. 

 

Join Shell & Lou as we travel right back to the VERY beginning and hear the incredible story of how one scouting trip changed Aotearoa New Zealand’s television history forever. 🌿✨

 

Follow us:

🌐 Website: https://xenawarriornutballs.com
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xenawarriornutballs/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578930248317

This week, Lou and Shell have grown out their beards and donned their muumuus as we welcome into the whānau Timothy Omundson AKA Eli!🧔🏻‍♀️💚🕊️

Yes! That devilishly handsome, charismatic man with the sparkling blue eyes who arrived in Xena and Gabrielle’s lives as a street magician, before becoming one of the most important spiritual figures in the series.🎩🪄🙏

In this episode, Tim talks about connecting with Lucy Lawless, Renée O’Connor, and Kevin Smith, how much he loved working with the Kiwi cast and crew, and getting up to some proper Kiwi antics when the cameras weren't rolling.⛳

And yes… he stole his muumuu.

HE STOLE HIS MUUMUU, YOU GUYS. 😂🤣

We absolutely ADORE this man. Tim is funny, warm, generous and genuinely phenomenal, and we loved hearing his memories of his time in Aotearoa and the people who made Xena so special.

Show notes:

Find Tim on Instagram

📸 Instagram: @omundson

If you'd like to hear about Tim's recovery from his stroke, check out “Tim's 9th Stroke-iversary” on The Psychologists Are In with Maggie Lawson and Timothy Omundson, released 7 May 2026.

🎧 Listen to “Tim's 9th Stroke-iversary” on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/31jzGjgNzD6XsLGlz9NvvC

 

Find Xena: Warrior Nutballs

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xenawarriornutballs/

📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578930248317 
🌐 www.xenawarriornutballs.com

In this Special Guest Side Quest, Lou gets up close with THE ACTUAL COSTUMES worn by Lucy Lawless and Renee O’Connor! 🤯⚔️ Getting to head behind the scenes at Te Papa, the National Museum of New Zealand, with Stephanie Gibson, Curator of New Zealand Histories and Cultures. 

 

We explore the craftsmanship and artistry behind Xena’s costume, initially designed by Barbara Darragh and reworked by Ngila Dickson, and Gabrielle’s Season 6 outfit, designed by Jane Holland, with props and weapons by Rob Gillies. 🧵✨

 

These aren't just costumes, they're pieces of Aotearoa’s screen history, celebrating the creativity and ingenuity of the people who brought Xena: Warrior Princess to life🎬❤️

 

👉 Xena’s costume: https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/765775
👉 Gabrielle’s outfit: https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/765776

 

And yes… Lou touches the chakram and absolutely loses her mind a little. 😂😭⚔️

 

🌿 www.xenawarriornutballs.com
📸 Instagram: @xenawarriornutballs
📘 Facebook: Xena: Warrior Nutballs

This week Lou and Shell talk with Rob Gillies, the Kiwi Production Designer on Xena: Warrior Princess⚒️🛡️🏛️⚔️ From the depths of Tartarus to the Elysian Fields, and everything in between, if you could see it in the Hercules and Xena universe, chances are Rob Gillies and his team built it. 📐⚒️🎨🖋️💪

 

As Production Designer across Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Xena: Warrior Princess, and Young Hercules, Rob transformed parts of West Auckland into the ancient world - creating everything from taverns, castles, Amazon villages, temples, palaces, and  that big ol' boat! 🍻⛵🏰🏹👑 These sets made the Xenaverse unforgettable! His team also crafted some of the franchise's most iconic props, including Xena's sword and chakram, along with Gabrielle's staff and sais. ⚔️

 

🎙️ Join us as Rob takes us behind the scenes of one of television's most ambitious fantasy worlds, sharing the craftsmanship, unforgettable behind-the-scenes stories, and Kiwi creativity that brought the Xenaverse to life. We also chat about his love for the gloriously nutty sets like in Prometheus, which he affectionately dubs "The Super Egg Men."🦅⛓️🥚😂

 

This interview is a true celebration of the early 90’s hard yakka in Aotearoa and what it took behind-the-scenes to create the cult classic hero of Xena!

 

💙 Follow Xena: Warrior Nutballs for more interviews with the Kiwi and Aussie cast and crew who brought the Xenaverse to life!

 

📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578930248317
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xenawarriornutballs/
🌐 Website: https://xenawarriornutballs.com