What The Cast Of Hercules Looks Like Today
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys was quite frequently silly, campy, and self-referential, but it was also a lot of fun to watch. The '90s TV phenomenon earned a dedicated worldwide fanbase—and generated the successful spinoffs Young Hercules and Xena: Warrior Princess—during its six-season run. Let's take a look back at the pantheon of stars from the Hercules universe, and find out where they are today—and how different they look now than they did during their Legendary Journeys.
Hercules - Kevin Sorbo
From 1995-1999, Kevin Sorbo starred as the title character of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. In the show, Hercules and his sidekick Iolaus—along with a rotating cast of other characters—adventured through ancient Europe, confronting evil beings and other challenges along the way.
Despite facing challenges with his personal health—like the three strokes he suffered because of an aneurysm in his shoulder—Sorbo has continued acting, starring in projects like the sci-fi drama series Andromeda from 2000-2005, and has provided his voice to video games like The Conduit, God of War III, Cloudberry Kingdom, and multiple Skylanders titles. More recently, Sorbo had a recurring role in the CW series Supergirl, and he's lined up nearly a dozen films for release in 2017 and 2018.
Iolaus - Michael Hurst
New Zealand native Michael Hurst co-starred in The Legendary Journeys as Iolaus, friend and sidekick to the now-mortal Hercules. Iolaus and other secondary characters took a larger role on the show while Kevin Sorbo was recovering from his 1997 stroke.
Like Sorbo, Hurst reprised his role in a few episodes of the Hercules spinoff show, Xena: Warrior Princess. He has also continued acting, most recently as a guest star on the series Terry Teo. Additionally, Hurst has honed his writing and directing skills over the years, recently directing episodes for Ash vs. Evil Dead and the New Zealand comedy-drama shows Westside and 800 Words.
Salmoneus - Robert Trebor
When Hercules wasn't partnered with Iolaus for an adventure, frequently he traveled with the crafty salesman Salmoneus (Robert Trebor), who was always looking for an opportunity to line his pockets with dinars. Like many of his Hercules castmates, Trebor reprised his role as Salmoneus on the Xena: Warrior Princess series.
Trebor has continued to appear in television shows and on the big screen, landing a list of parts that includes guest roles in Boomtown and The Devil's Rejects. Most recently, Trebor played "The Producer" in the 2016 Coen brothers comedy Hail, Caesar!
Xena - Lucy Lawless
What started out as a guest role on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys turned into a career-making move for Lucy Lawless when she was cast as Xena, a dark and bloodthirsty figure who turns her life around and becomes a hero with a little help from her friends. She was given her own spinoff series, Xena: Warrior Princess, which ran from 1995-2001.
Lawless has maintained a successful acting career since then, appearing in dozens of films and shows. Notably, she guest-starred in 16 episodes of Battlestar Galactica and reunited with Jeffrey Thomas when she was cast as the recurring character Lucretia in the Starz series Spartacus. Lawless also had a recurring role on Parks and Recreation as Diane Lewis, and has been seen in major parts on Ash vs Evil Dead and Salem.
Jason - Jeffrey Thomas
For 16 episodes of Hercules, Jeffrey Thomas played the legendary ruler King Jason, leader of the Argonauts and hero to Hercules himself. Later in the series, Jason gave up his crown to Iphicles and married Alcmene.
Thomas later appeared as Titus in the Starz series Spartacus and the dwarven king Thror in Peter Jackson's film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. In 2015, he starred in the horror film The Dead Room. More recently, Thomas appeared in The Light Between Oceans, a 2016 drama about a lighthouse keeper and his wife, who find and raise an orphaned baby.
Alcmene (and others) - Elizabeth Hawthorne
In The Legendary Journeys, Elizabeth Hawthorne was one of several actresses who portrayed Alcmene, the mother of Hercules. She also portrayed several other characters in the Hercules/Xena universe, including Jocasta, Hera, Mary Contrary, and Queen Omphale (pictured above).
The New Zealand-born Hawthorne is still active today, and is also known for her roles as Mrs. McCready in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Orsova in Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, and as a Prelate in the television series Legend of the Seeker. Like Jeffrey Thomas, Hawthorne had a role in The Light Between Oceans, and recently appeared in a 2017 episode of the Australian crime series Wanted.
Autolycus - Bruce Campbell
Although he's much better known for his role as Ash in the Evil Dead horror-comedy franchise, Bruce Campbell is remembered by fans of The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess as Autolycus—the self-proclaimed "King of Thieves" who occasionally teams up or assists Hercules and Xena on their adventures. Campbell was also an executive producer for the Hercules series.
Campbell has remained in demand for his acting skills over the years, with dozens of appearances in films and television shows. He appeared regularly on the shows Burn Notice and The Replacements. Most recently, Campbell returned to his roots by starring in the Starz comedy/action series Ash vs Evil Dead.
Aphrodite - Alexandra Tydings
For 10 episodes of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and 11 episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess, Alexandra Tydings played Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and half-sister of Hercules. Despite the "dumb blonde" stereotype she portrayed as Aphrodite, Tydings is one smart cookie. She largely retired from acting after Xena, turning her attention to writing and directing. Both on her own and with the production company 811 Films, Tydings has created many independent films, documentaries, and other projects.
Morrigan - Tamara Gorski
Tamara Gorski portrayed Morrigan on The Legendary Journeys, a half-mortal, half-god figure who was essentially an evil counterpart to Hercules as she terrorized Ireland. With Hercules' help, she managed to break free of Kernunnos' influence and take her place as Eire's hero and the Druid of Justice. Gorski has continued to act since Hercules, and can be spotted in dozens of films and television shows over the last 15 years, including Poltergeist: The Legacy, The Next Three Days, and Without a Trace, as well as the 2015 film Steel.
Nebula - Gina Torres
While she's better known these days for her roles as Zoe in Firefly and Jessica Pearson in Suits, many fans will remember Gina Torres as the Sumerian princess and pirate Nebula from Hercules. (She also made a one-episode appearance in Xena: Warrior Princess as Cleopatra.) Torres has had a stellar Hollywood career since Hercules, landing major roles in 24, Cleopatra 2525, Alias, Standoff, Transformers Prime, and Huge. More recently, she appeared in the ABC series The Catch and provided the voice of Ikora Rey in the video game Destiny 2.
Strife (and others) - Joel Tobeck
Like Elizabeth Hawthorne, Joel Tobeck was something of a chameleon in the Hercules universe. He primarily played the Greek god Strife in The Legendary Journeys, but also appeared as Strife's cousin Deimos. He reprised the role of Strife in the Young Hercules series, and played Deimos and Lucifer in Xena: Warrior Princess.
In addition to significant roles in This is Not My Life and Sons of Anarchy, Tobeck later reunited with several of his castmates for other projects, including Gina Torres on Cleopatra 2525, Michael Hurst in Westside, and Bruce Campbell in Ash vs Evil Dead. More recently, Tobeck filmed a role in the science fiction film Mortal Engines.
Ares - Kevin Tod Smith
After appearing on The Legendary Journeys as Iphicles, the half-brother of Hercules, New Zealand actor Kevin Tod Smith landed a major recurring role on the show (and the Xena spinoff) as Ares, the God of War. He'd star in over 50 episodes as Ares between the two shows, filming for both productions at the same time.
Smith seemed to have a promising career ahead of him, and was cast to appear in the Bruce Willis war drama Tears of the Sun, but he passed away before he could film the part. After wrapping up his work for the Chinese martial-arts film Warriors of Virtue 2, Smith accidentally fell from a prop tower on a nearby set, and suffered major injuries which led to his death on February 15th, 2002.