Xena Warrior Princess star Renee O’Connor, 52, looks unrecognisable 23 years on

Renee O’Connor – better known as iconic sidekick Gabrielle in Xena: Warrior Princess – has popped up on social media.

Xena Warrior Princess was the legendary nineties TV show starring Lucy Lawless.

It was a spin-off of the original TV series, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, where Xena was the villain.

But aside from Lucy, another star who was beloved by fans was Renee O’Connor who played her sidekick Gabrielle in Xena: Warrior Princess, reports The Sun.

It’s been 23 years since Renee, 52, has played the iconic character and now she looks almost unrecognisable from her TV heyday.

Her character, Gabrielle, was an iconic sidekick. Picture: Supplied

The braids are now nowhere to be seen and the shoulder length hair is mostly styled into a chic bob.

She was chosen to play the role after her role in the television movie, Hercules and the Lost Kingdom.

She was involved in the program for six years, first joining in 1995 until the end of the show in 2001.

O’Connor has continued acting since the series ended. Picture: Instagram

Her most recent film appearance was in 2017. Picture: Instagram

The icon was known for her trademark weapons, which included the Amazon fighting staff.

Her character started off as a young and innocent farm girl but by the end of the show was a rational warrior set to follow in the footsteps of the title character Xena.

Although from the very first episode, she could talk her way out of difficult scenarios.

Storylines included persuading a Cyclops not to eat her, talking a violent crowd out of killing Xena and convincing her to let her join her as a travelling partner.

Her most recent film role was in the 2017 movie, A Question of Faith and in 2021 she reunited with Lucy Lawless in the TV show, My Life Is Murder.

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission.