# Renee O'Connor

Evelyn Renee O'Connor (born February 15, 1971) is an American actress, producer, and director, known for the role of Gabrielle on the television series Xena: Warrior Princess.

## Early life

Born in Houston and raised in suburban Katy, Texas by her mother Sandra, O'Connor at age 12 studied acting at the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas. She attended Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, and made her professional debut as a dancing Porky Pig at that city's Six Flags AstroWorld. Afterward, she moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue an acting career.

## Career

O'Connor made her screen debut at 17, starring in the "Teen Angel" segment of the Disney Channel's The Mickey Mouse Club, and the subsequent Teen Angel TV series. She went on to the Disney film The Adventures of Huck Finn and TV-movies including Follow the River, Danielle Steele's Changes, and Hercules and the Lost Kingdom, starring Kevin Sorbo. There, in the role of Deianeira, O'Connor came to the attention of Hercules executive producers Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi, who cast her as Gabrielle in the spinoff TV series Xena: Warrior Princess.
In 2001, O'Connor began her own film production company, Roc Productions. The following year, she played Lady Macbeth in the Shakespeare by the Sea production of Macbeth. O'Connor reprised the role in a House of Bards Theatre Company production in San Pedro, California, from October 11 to November 3, 2019. She played Nurse in the Southern Shakespeare Company's May 10–13, 2018, production of Romeo and Juliet alongside her 16-year-old son, Miles Muir.

## Personal life

In 1998, O'Connor began dating restaurateur Steve Muir. The couple married in 2000 and O'Connor had a son in 2001. O'Connor and Muir divorced in 2004.
O'Connor began a relationship with Jed Sura in 2004 and had a daughter in March, 2006. O'Connor and Sura were married in 2017.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Match Point | Robin | Television movie |
| 1989 | Night Game | Lorraine Beasley | |
| 1990 | Black Snow | Jennifer Winslow | |
| 1990 | False Identity | Angela Errickson | |
| 1991 | Changes | Jessica Adams | Television film |
| 1991 | Stone Cold | Tinselteeth Hostage | |
| 1993 | Sworn to Vengeance | Unknown | Television film |
| 1993 | The Adventures of Huck Finn | Julia Wilks | |
| 1993 | The Flood: Who Will Save Our Children? | Leslie | Television film |
| 1994 | Hercules and the Lost Kingdom | Deianeira | Television film |
| 1995 | Follow the River | Bettie Draper | Television film |
| 1995 | The Rockford Files: A Blessing in Disguise | Laura Sue Dean | Television film |
| 1995 | Darkman II: The Return of Durant | Laurie Brinkman | |
| 1997 | Hercules & Xena: Wizards of the Screen | Gabrielle | Short film |
| 1998 | Hercules and Xena – The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus | Gabrielle | |
| 2001 | Accidents Don't Happen | Ashton | |
| 2004 | One Weekend a Month | Meg McDermott | Short film |
| 2005 | Alien Apocalypse | Lieutenant Kelly Lanaman | Television film |
| 2007 | Ghost Town: The Movie | Little Jack | |
| 2007 | Boogeyman 2 | Dr. Jessica Ryan | |
| 2008 | Diamonds and Guns | Ashley | Also executive producer and co-director |
| 2008 | Monster Ark | Dr. Ava Greenway | Television film |
| 2009 | Bitch Slap | Sister Batril | |
| 2010 | Words Unspoken | Sue | Short film; also director, producer, and writer |
| 2010 | 2010: Moby Dick | Dr. Michelle Herman | |
| 2011 | Deadrise | Paula | |
| 2011 | Infinity | Elizabeth | Short film, Producer |
| 2011 | Are You Kidding Me? | | Director |
| 2013 | Stranded From An Island | | Short; executive producer and assistant editor |
| 2015 | Beyond the Farthest Star | Maurene Wells | |
| 2015 | Last Chance | Carrie | Television film; also executive producer |
| 2015 | Broken Things | | Director |
| 2016 | The Usual | Mrs. Ford | Short film; also executive producer |
| 2017 | Watch the Sky | Shannon | Producer |
| 2017 | A Question of Faith | Mary Danielson | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Teen Angel | Nancy Nichols | |
| 1990 | Tales from the Crypt | Waitress | Episode: "The Switch" |
| 1991 | ABC Afterschool Specials | Linda | Episode: "The Less Than Perfect Daughter" |
| 1992 | FBI: The Untold Stories | Officer Renee Lanot / Tina Marie Risico | 3 episodes |
| 1993 | NYPD Blue | Rebecca Sloane | Episode: "Oscar, Meyer, Weiner" |
| 1997–1999 | Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Gabrielle | 4 episodes |
| 1995–2001 | Xena: Warrior Princess | Gabrielle | 134 episodes |
| 2002 | Mataku | American Buyer | Episode: "The Heirloom" |
| 2008 | Criminal Minds | Pam Baleman | Episode: "A Higher Power" |
| 2010 | Ark | Connie Miller | 9 episodes |
| 2021 | My Life Is Murder | Clarissa Klein | Episode: "Pleasure & Pain" |

## Theater

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2002 | Macbeth | Lady Macbeth | Shakespeare by the Sea |
| 2017 | Dinner With Friends | Beth | Little Fish Theatre |
| 2017 | Annie | Lily St.Regis (as Renee Sura) | Warner Grand Theatre |
| 2018 | Romeo and Juliet | The Nurse | Southern Shakespeare Company |
| 2018 | On Clover Road | Kate Hunter | Little Fish Theatre |
| 2018 | Mary Poppins | Ms. Brill (as Renee Sura) | Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center |
| 2019 | The Wizard of Oz | The Wicked Witch of the West (as Renee Sura) | Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center |
| 2019 | Uncle Vanya | Yelena Andreyevna | Little Fish Theatre |