Nessus the centaur was a farmhand who worked for Hercules and Deianeira. He was a devout worshipper of Hera and he was extremely jealous of Hercules. One night, while drunk, he told Deianeira that he was better than Hercules. Later, he tried to rape Deianeira but Hercules stopped him by shooting him with an arrow. As he lay dying, Nessus bled on Deianeira's cloak. He prayed to Hera to turn his blood into poison and the goddess did. Then, with his last breaths, Nessus convinced Deianeira to give Hercules the cloak for protection. She did, but instead of protecting the hero, it later attacked him.
He had a brother called Nemis.
Gallery[]
Nessus
Background[]
- Nessus was played by Cliff Curtis, who later played Nemis.
- Stock footage of Nessus appeared in the show's opening sequence.
- Although Nessus appears near the "beginning" of Hercules' story in the Xenaverse, he appears near the end of the original myth. His poisoned blood or semen (depending on source) is what Deianira smears on Heracles' shirt, thinking it is a love potion. Heracles dies of complications from the poison shortly thereafter.