In this photo released by Greenpeace, actress Lucy Lawless and five Greenpeace activists are arrested by police atop a 174-foot (53-meter) drilling tower on the Noble Discoverer in Port Taranaki, New Zealand, on Monday, Feb. 27, 2012.
Here’s a cause that could use some help from Xena. Actress Lucy Lawless and five others were arrested on Monday, three days after they climbed onto an oil-drilling ship to prevent it from making exploratory wells in the Arctic.
They were charged for unlawfully boarding a ship and burglary, though it’s unclear at this point what was taken from the ship.
Last Friday, the group climbed onto a drilling tower in Port Taranaki, New Zealand to stop it from making its journey. The ship, which was being chartered by Shell, had been scheduled to leave over the weekend. Five of the other six protesters were also members of Greenpeace.
(MORE: An Oil Company Strikes Out in the Arctic)
[tweet https://twitter.com/#!/RealLucyLawless/status/173891242424410112]
The New Zealand actress rose to fame for her work in Xena: Warrior Princess, and currently is featured on Starz’s Spartacus.
Lawless told the Associated Press her reason for joining onboard with the cause. “I’ve got three kids. My sole biological reason for being on this planet is to ensure that they can flourish, and they can’t do that in a filthy, degraded environment. We need to stand up while we still can.”
The protesters are expected to appear in court on Thursday.