"Having to block your ears and eyes from that has been a challenge"- When Olivia Cooke opened up on the response to her House of the Dragon character
Leading a show like House of the Dragon is never an easy task, and Olivia Cooke, who portrays Alicent Hightower, one of the two leads in perhaps the biggest ongoing series on the planet, learned this soon after she started with the role. She made her appearance in the sixth episode of the first season and was immediately shocked by the response from fans.
As most know already, Game of Thrones has built a huge fanbase across the globe, which practically got transferred to House of the Dragon, and pleasing Game of Thrones fans has always been a challenging task, even for veteran creators and actors.
Speaking about the attention she received, some of which was negative, as well, Olivia Cooke shared in an interview with Harper's Bazaar in 2022.
"It’s different, for sure...When my episodes aired, I was subject to an immediate visibility that I hadn’t experienced before when I was walking down the street. I’m so naïve, but I think I was purposely so because I didn’t want to confront this anxiety."
Addressing the attention she particularly received from Game of Thrones fans, she added:
"The Game of Thrones fans have been quite noisy, and having to block your ears and eyes from that has been a challenge."
She revealed how she was initially self-flagellating, thinking about the response. She eventually accepted it as people were talking about Alicent Hightower and not Olivia Cooke. She discussed this in the same interview.
"People talk about you like they know you and it’s just so odd"- Olivia Cooke on the response to Alicent Hightower's character
Inside the House of the Dragon universe, Alicent Hightower's conduct has not always been noble, to say the least. But that has little to do with Olivia Cooke, who has played the character to perfection up to this point of the story.
She revealed that she was shaken by the initial response and was even wondering why she was to blame. She ultimately came to the resolution that all the talk happening around was not really about her but her character. Speaking about this to Harper's Bazaar, Olivia Cooke said:
"It’s like the school playground – you want to know what everyone is saying about you and what’s been said...I did in the beginning, and I was like, ‘F**k me’,...I was self-flagellating. It’s mad because what they’re talking about is this fantasy version of me that doesn’t exist whatsoever. People talk about you like they know you and it’s just so odd. All you can do is be as authentic as possible."
This was a new experience for Olivia Cooke, who had been in the industry for almost a decade before she starred as Alicent Hightower. This goes on to show just how impactful the Game of Thrones spinoff remains in the television world.
Cooke is set to reappear as Alicent Hightower in the upcoming third season of House of the Dragon, and it would be surprising if the reaction to her character is not worse than before this time.
She is also soon set to appear in Visitation and Switzerland. She will also appear in a new TV show, The Girlfriend, which is still in the filming process.
