World Of Warcraft’s Claudia Christian Reveals Her Biggest Moment With Xal’atath

World of Warcraft is thriving, with the base game’s epic narrative only growing more ambitious with the “Midnight” expansion. With World of Warcraft Forever‘s beta outperforming expectations, all eyes are on how the baseline game keeps up the momentum. Luckily, the game is about to take the battle against Xal’atath to the biggest scale possible in the conclusion of the epic “Midnight” expansion pack.

“Midnight: Eclipse” is setting off a massive battle between the forces of the Void and the rest of the world, with Xal’atath taking on her biggest role to date. Introduced in 2016’s “Legion” expansion pack for World of Warcraft as a weapon, Xal’atath has since evolved into one of the game’s most compelling and complex antagonists. Comic Book got to sit down with Xal’atath’s voice actor, Claudia Christian, to talk about how her perspective on the character has changed over the last decade and teased the new layers to the character teased out in the upcoming conclusion of the Midnight trilogy.

“It Brings A Little Bit Of Humanity Out Of Her:” Claudia Christian Teases Xal’atath’s Midnight Future

Comic Book: Xal’atath has been a part of your life for so long now. Looking back to when you were first approached by the character, what was your first reaction to getting to play in this sandbox?

Claudia Christian: I just thought it was going to be a one-off. I’d come in a couple of times come in, whisper in people’s heads, and sound a little like Kathleen Turner. I was a knife! But then Zalatath got a body, and then became this badass, an antagonist for the entire universe. It was shockingly good timing for me… having voiceover was enormously helpful at the time, and so I have a big place in my heart for Blizzard for allowing me to keep my health insurance. Thank you very much, Blizzard. God bless you. I’m in Diablo and Hearthstone too!

[What’s interesting] is that Xal’atath is not just a bad person. I shouldn’t say person — entity. She’s a bad guy, but that’s not all she is. I don’t want to give anything away, but especially in the recent recordings I’ve done, there’s a reason behind her anger and pain. It brings a little bit of humanity out of her. They showed me a visual of what she was before all this, and that changed everything for me.

That’s a fascinating challenge, because characters like Xal’atath have shown so many different shades over the years. How have the reveals of her backstory, like in this overarching Midnight story, impacted your performance?

I found so many more layers. I mean, they were already percolating there because you can’t be an angry or bad person without a reason. Quite often, baddies are the most interesting because they’re reacting from trauma or pain. But as a performer, it’s really hard to convey that when you don’t have the details. I don’t play the game. I don’t immerse myself in the world. I only know what I record. Luckily, the directors are wonderful at explaining where we are in the game. These things get revealed to me there.

It reminds me of a Friday night on 9-1-1, which I’ve been working on for a decade. Really, there’s very little about my character. There was no showbible. There was no deep story about Captain Maynard. I’m just the captain of the LAPD. There’s no history. I used to joke and say, ‘Am I married? Am I gay? Am I straight? Am I this? Am I that? Do I have a dog?’ This last episode that I just shot Friday night has this huge reveal that I could have known for a decade. Not that I would play it differently, but I was just like, ‘Oh, so that’s what I am!’ It was like it was on Babylon 5 when I found out [Ivanova] is bisexual. ‘And my brother’s dead? It would have been nice to know in the first season! [Laughter].”

What I think fans don’t understand is that a lot of times, companies don’t come in with the bible because they have to be flexible. You don’t know where the character’s going, and as a writer, because I also write, my characters tell me where they want to go. I don’t plot out. I’m very different from most people who have giant sketches and a story bible. My bible comes after I’ve written the book or story or first season. Then I can write the bible because I don’t know what I’m going to write before then. I sit down, and it comes to me. If an actor was cast tomorrow in something that I wrote, I’d have to write it first and then give them the backstory, which makes sense. But I wouldn’t know where they were going in the future because I don’t know. So you know, that’s part of the joy of discovery of creativity, and that’s something Blizzard excels at.

Surprises In World Of Warcraft And Reflections On Babylon 5

Looking back from when you joined the game to the “Midnight” expansion, what has surprised you the most about being a part of World of Warcraft?

I think it’s the really deep history, the cultural story of the characters. They have these other worlds that have all had their wars and enemies. Once you understand the dynamic of all of the factions, then it’s not just, ‘Oh, I don’t like you. I’m going to kill you.’ There has to be an impetus behind it. That’s information that I find valuable. What if this character that I have a scene with didn’t hurt me directly, but what if I find out that they killed my dragon? That makes a huge difference… there’s some sort of shared history. I think that those are the insights that I like. I’m not just hating on this character because I don’t like green. I’m hating on this character because they destroyed something of mine.

Those are critical to at least put a modicum of authenticity into the scene without playing this generic thing. There have to be reasons. In video games, it can be difficult. In television, I usually create a backstory for myself, just so I can have some choices and stakes at hand. I create a family and a history. If the writers and creators aren’t going to give that to me, then I do it myself. Especially if it’s a guest star or some one-off appearance, you have to just create your own story.

[It’s different] in video games, it’s so entrenched. The history is so deep and varied and complex. I would never have the time or the ability to memorize it all. I need these little cliff notes, these handy little packages right before doing a scene. It’s interesting because when you play something for so long, you are kind of married to the behavior… You have to know that history. They are critical things in order to make the performance seem real. I really love Xal’atath, and especially after everything we’ve learned about her. It makes her more authentic.

I’ve got to ask — have you heard anything about Babylon 5? I was such a fan of the show as a kid, and the animated film The Road Home was a lot of fun. Would you want to return to that universe if you got the chance?

I mean, for a while there, before he moved to London, [Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski] was in touch with all of us [about a return] because we had a sort of a deal at the CW. Then the executive left, and the CW was disbanded basically, and NexStar wasn’t interested in scripted television, so that all went kaput. We were all excited to see other characters and come back in these older, elder statesman kind of roles. That was exciting.

In regard to the animation, we were supposed to be doing, I think, at least one a year. We haven’t done any since [The Road Home]. I don’t know if that was lack of performance or funding or interest. Maybe it’s just time. Maybe Joe’s focused on something else. I have no idea. I’m still buddies with the actors; I think all of us feel the same way. It was a beloved gift, and we garnered some unbelievable friendships out of it, and also a life that involves doing all this. I don’t think I would have been in a Disney film or any video game if it wasn’t for my sci-fi cred from Babylon 5. I have so much to thank that show for.

World of Warcraft’s “Midnight: Eclipse” update is currently set for a 2027 release date.