Editing Xena (section)

==Creation and production==
[[Image:Rob Tapert.JPG|thumb|220px|right|Xena co-creator [[Robert Tapert]].]]
Xena was developed in 1995 by John Schulian as a minor character in ''[[Hercules: The Legendary Journeys]]'', although Lawless had already appeared as the character Lyla in the episode "[[As Darkness Falls]]".<ref name="adf">{{cite episode|title=[[As Darkness Falls]]|series=Hercules: The Legendary Journeys|series-link=Hercules: The Legendary Journeys|airdate=20 February 1995}}</ref> Xena was originally conceived to die at the end of the third episode, "[[Unchained Heart]]", but when the studio decided they wanted to do a spin-off from ''Hercules'', producer [[Robert Tapert]] said that Xena was the best choice, since she was largely well received by television critics and fans and had a full story to be explored.<ref name="creator">{{cite news | title =Sins of the Past| publisher = Whoosh | date =11 May 2001 | url =http://whoosh.org/epguide/sins.html | access-date =2 November 2007}}</ref> The studio wanted a spinoff about ''[[Jason]] and the [[Argonauts]]'', but Tapert said that show would be too similar to ''Hercules''.<ref name="creator" />

The original choice to play Xena was British actress [[Vanessa Angel (English actress)|Vanessa Angel]], but she became ill and had to decline the role.<ref name="axe">{{cite news | title =''Xena'' Gets the Axe| work = BBC News | date =17 October 2000 | url =http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/976257.stm | access-date =2 November 2007}}</ref> Ultimately the role was given to Lawless as she was already a resident of [[New Zealand]].<ref name="axe" /> Lawless had several mishaps playing the character due to the stunts (some of which she performed herself), such as getting cut by swords, being struck in the head, and horse-related incidents. In 1996, while rehearsing a sketch for ''[[The Tonight Show with Jay Leno]],'' she broke her [[human pelvis|hip]] when she was thrown from a horse.<ref name="leno">{{cite news| title =Lucy Lawless Interview: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno| publisher =AUSXIP/MaryD| date =30 October 1996| url =http://www.lucylawless.info/interviews/1996/jayleno1096/index.html| access-date =2 November 2007| archive-date =6 October 2008| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20081006173738/http://www.lucylawless.info/interviews/1996/jayleno1096/index.html| url-status =dead}}</ref> As a result, several episodes of season two were edited to accommodate her recovery, some were changed so Lawless could appear only briefly, and new episodes were written to highlight Gabrielle and supporting characters.<ref name="leno" />

[[Bruce Campbell]], [[Rose McIver]], [[Hudson Leick]], and [[Ted Raimi]] also portrayed Xena in various episodes as a result of "body-swap" plotlines.

The name ''Xena'' derives from the ancient Greek {{lang|el|ξένος}} (''[[Xenos (Greek)|xenos]]''), meaning "stranger".<ref>{{cite web | title =Lucy Lawless | publisher = Archive of American Television | date =21 August 2013 | url =http://emmytvlegends.org/interviews/people/lucy-lawless# | access-date =21 July 2015}}</ref>