That's right! Xena did indeed start out as a villain.
She was first introduced in the Hercules: The Legendary Journeys three-episode arc titled "The Warrior Princess," where she was portrayed as a ruthless and power-hungry warlord known as the
"Destroyer of Nations." Her initial goal was to defeat Hercules.
However, during these episodes, she experienced betrayal and was eventually moved by Hercules' refusal to kill her and his belief that she could choose a different path. This led to Xena's change of heart and set the stage for her own series, Xena: Warrior Princess, where she embarked on a quest for redemption for her past misdeeds. The entire premise of her show revolves around her trying to atone for the evil she had committed and using her formidable fighting skills to help those in need.