Lucy Lawless reveals what's next for her show My Life Is Murder. Photo / Matt Klitscher
Lucy Lawless reveals what's next for her show My Life Is Murder. Photo / Matt Klitscher
Lucy Lawless is in North America promoting Kiwi content, particularly her hit New Zealand whodunnit show My Life is Murder.
From New York, Lawless tells Spy she is delighted that audiences around the world have found MLIM and says our vernacular is no longer a drawback for international audiences.
“American audiences are so accustomed to British accents now and even Australian, our Kiwi accent is just an intriguing step further,” Lawless tells Spy.
The show’s fourth season starts tonight on TVNZ1 and TVNZ+. It will be the third time Lawless proudly showcases her home city of Auckland, with her character Alexa Crowe solving crimes alongside her trusty assistant Ebony Vagulans, who plays Madison Feliciano.
Lawless and Vagulans have been on the show since its inception in Melbourne.
After season one, Lawless saw the opportunity for a local MLIM in Auckland.
“Greenstone licensed Alexa and Ebony’s characters, brought in a New Zealand creative team, added Rawiri Jobe and Joe Naufahu, got TVNZ on board, and the Aotearoa version of the show was born,” she says.
Vagulans was literally the last person to come in to audition for the role of Madison. When Lawless saw her, she knew it could be no one else.
The bold colours that have become synonymous with the show, on the sets and in the wardrobe, are not an accident.
“So much in my career has been about the dark side of humanity.
“When I first agreed to do the show, I wanted to be part of something good and kind and fun and colourful.”
Lawless says colour is one of her show’s points of difference.
Joe Naufahu (left), Ebony Vagulans, Rawiri Jobe and Lucy Lawless (front). Photo / Matt Klitscher
“Colour is the easiest way to impact any room you walk into, similar to when audiences tune in, they know exactly what show they’re watching.”
Lawless is delighted series regular Martin Henderson is back as her brother, reformed criminal Will Crowe.
This season Will is put to work gathering intel for Alexa, though he’s already shagging one of the suspects.
Lawless has a string of international and local talent guests starring this season - English comedian Bill Bailey, heavyweight acting Aussie talents Jacqui McKenzie and Rodger Corser, and Kiwi Erik Thomson, as well as three former Gloss stars, Dame Miranda Harcourt, Illona Rodgers and Lisa Chappell.
“Lisa explodes on our scene in one of the most hilarious episodes we’ve ever done.
Lawless says her old friend Thomson plays a celebrity hairdresser caught up in the show’s most outrageous crime to date, which Lawless says gave her chills.
It’s been a big year for Lawless - as well as MLIM, she made her critically acclaimed directorial debut on documentary Never Look Away about New Zealand CNN combat camerawoman Margaret Moth.
“Margaret was a hell of a broad,” says Lawless.
She made the documentary with Kiwis in mind, wanting them to get to know their least-known famous person, while also wanting to make the NZ Film Commission proud they had invested in Moth and in her.
“What I didn’t count on was that Never Look Away would be invited to join some of the world’s most prestigious festivals.
“I am very proud of all those who gave their all to do right by Margaret.”
With the current economic pressures on the local production industry, Lawless says Kiwis must create stories. Otherwise, we will become a cultural subsidiary of other countries, and nobody wants that.
However, she says in the past year she has had a real education about the business of showbiz.
“I didn’t realise that there was a whole industry devoted to assessing monetisation of film and television product - before, during and after it gets made.
“Aside from things that are cultural taonga, which should rightly be supported by our Government, we also should become adept at making films or television for international consumption, that can pay their way.
“Surely we can have both.”
Lawless is hoping for a fifth season of MLIM and is working hard on pitches for four other projects - two scripted and two documentary.
