Lucy Lawless, Xena Warrior Princess, Captures Oil-Drilling Ship

Lawless and the Greenpeace members boarded the Shell-contracted ship this morning, in hopes that their protest would keep it from leaving Auckland, New Zealand for the Alaskan coast. That vessel, the Noble Discoverer, is scheduled to drill three exploratory oil wells this summer in the Chukchi Sea off the coast of Alaska.

Runnin' Scared reached out to Lawless, who took a few minutes to chat about the demo.

Runnin' Scared: So how are you doing? It sounds kind of noisy over there...

Lawless: I'm doing good, thank you. I'm way up high and on top of the drill-bit. We're right at the top of the tower. That's the police telling us to come down and speak.

Runnin' Scared: What's it like on the boat?

Lawless: I've been on the ship since 7:30 this morning. I'm going to say I'm a bit shell shocked, but we really believe in the cause and that's why we're here. We're way high up -- 50 or 60 meters off the ground.

Runnin' Scared: What made you go from acting to activism?

Lawless: I really don't think of myself as an activist. So how did this happen? The world has been putting fossil fuels in the air and the scientists have been screaming from the rooftops. The fact that now the major oil companies are spearheading this mad oil dash to the Arctic, one of the most pristine environments left on the planet, it's the definition of madness. They think the melting ice caps is not a warning to humanity about climate change -- they think it's an invitation. This is unacceptable. We cannot allow our grandchildren to grow up with a terrible burden. That's what we're doing here today. Hands off the Arctic!

Runnin' Scared: How did you get involved with Greenpeace?

Lawless: I've known Greenpeace in New Zealand since I played a role in the movie The Rainbow Warrior, when I played [activist] Jane Redmond. I've known her since then and now, I really just want to fight like a tiger for my children.

Follow Victoria Bekiempis @vicbekiempis.