BURBANK, CA—Academy Award nominee Keisha Castle-Hughes ("Whale Rider") will guest star on an episode of the nationally syndicated series "Legend of the Seeker," it was announced today. Castle-Hughes, who begins filming the episode in her native New Zealand this week, will portray a beautiful and powerful young woman claiming to be the Creator, the living embodiment of a God. When she demonstrates extraordinary power, unraveling the mystery of her true identity becomes a matter of life and death for Richard (Craig Horner), Kahlan (Bridget Regan) and Zedd (Bruce Spence). Combining elements of fantasy, adventure, magic, mystery and romance with state-of-the-art visual effects and a high level of action, "Legend of the Seeker" is an adaptation of internationally best-selling author Terry Goodkinds "Sword of Truth" book series.

Castle-Hughes is best known for her role as Paikea "Pai" Apirana in the 2002 film "Whale Rider," for which she was nominated for an Academy Award. At 13 she was the youngest female to be nominated in the Best Actress category. Since then, she has appeared in a number of films, including "The Nativity Story," in which she played the Virgin Mary; "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith"; "Hey, its Ester Blueburger"; and the New Zealand telefilm "Piece of my Heart."



Shot with the exotic and rugged New Zealand landscape as its backdrop, "Legend of the Seeker" is produced by ABC Studios and distributed by Disney-ABC Domestic Television. Ken Biller, Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, Ned Nalle and Josh Donen serve as executive producers. Currently in its second season, the series airs Saturdays and Sundays in national syndication.