Similar to Game of Thrones, HBO’s prequel spinoff series House of the Dragon features heroes and villains who aren’t exactly black and white. Though Rhaenyra Targaryen is the main character who viewers tend to root for, she doesn’t always do the right thing. In fact, we’ve watched her make quite a few mistakes during the show’s first season. Many of us love Daemon Targaryen, but he’s one of the most devious people on the show. With morally ambiguous characters like this, it’s fun to debate who we like and dislike the most.
As for Alicent Hightower, she’s seen as a villain by many viewers simply because she’s on the side opposing Rhaenyra. And while I personally can empathize with the character and find redeeming qualities about her, a lot of people just can’t. Actress Olivia Cooke was recently interviewed by The Wrap for an episode of their UnWrapped Podcast, where she discussed the public reactions to Alicent.
Olivia Cooke laughs off negative reactions to Alicent Hightower
Fortunately, it seems like Cooke is mostly amused by the negative reactions to Alicent. She shared one anecdote where a woman at a pub recently told her that she plays a “C-word,” followed by an “I hate you.” The actress laughed it off during the interview, noting that her performance is making people feel something, which of course is a good thing. Cooke explained that she doesn’t want to play characters who are “liked universally.”
“I’m learning to have a bit more of a rhino skin, so I don’t really take it personally,” Cooke said. “I know not the heroine. I went into that knowing that she’s a very flawed person, and she’s full of all these just different complexities.”
Olivia Cooke talks House of the Dragon foot scene
The hosts of the UnWrapped Podcast also asked Cooke how many DMs she’d gotten since showing her feet on House of the Dragon. In case you missed it, Alicent has a twisted deal with the character Larys Strong where he carries out deeds and uncovers information for her, but in exchange she has to show him her bare feet.
Cooke admitted the response to the scene was “surprising.” Sounded a bit grossed out, she said, “I was number one on wikiFeet for a while.” In the end, she seems to be a good sport about it all, laughing about the situation before adding: “It’s one for the memoirs.”
House of the Dragon season 2 is currently filming in Europe, and we’ve seen some set photos of Cooke alongside her costars in Cáceres, Spain, which stands in for King’s Landing.
The highly anticipated second season doesn’t have a release date yet, but HBO executive Francesca Orsi has said we should expect it in the summer of 2024. Fingers crossed it’s another hit!
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