George R.R. Martin is still working on his next Game of Thrones books, but at least fans won't be fully devoid of new content to watch. A brand-new line-up of Game of Thrones spin-off shows is scheduled to be released in the near future, including the highly-anticipated HBO series House of the Dragon. The show, which will serve as a prequel to Game of Thrones, will follow the events of Fire and Blood, Martin's book from the same franchise. Starring in the show is Bates Motel actress Olivia Cooke who, after many months, has finally spoken out about her character, Queen Alicent Hightower.
Based on Cooke's description of the Queen to Collider (which wasn't too in-depth since she did not want to give too much away), it seems that her character has the potential to be the fans' new problematic fave. According to Cooke, she is an incredibly complex figure with a couple of unfavorable qualities, and that will make her interesting to watch. Cooke also thinks that people will actually want to see the worst in her come out, as it would bring that characteristic brand of shock-and-awe drama that fans of Game of Thrones expect to see in the story.
So far, we know that the Queen is in a power struggle with her husband King Viserys (Paddy Considine). As the second wife of the King, Alicent wants her sons to inherit the throne, while her stepdaughter, Princess Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy), desires it for herself. The Queen also has tensions with her siblings, which adds to the overall conflict. Given this plotline and the Queen's morally twisted character, we could expect her to go to great lengths to prevent Targaryen from getting what she wants, even if means paying the price of betrayal and bloodshed.
Additionally, the show will be set three hundred years prior to the events of Game of Thrones, so there will a lot of room for the show's writers to explore the other facets of the universe. In terms of the work behind the scenes, Cooke mentioned that there is a massive crew of artists and creatives that are making mind-blowing pieces for the show, from the sets to the costumes. Even the tiny props that she holds in her scenes are rich in history and lore, which really speaks to the show's production quality. Let's just hope there isn't another Starbucks cup mishap this time around.
It's going to be some time before we find out what happens next in the Game of Thrones universe. Production on the Game of Thrones prequel was recently paused due to a COVID-19 case, though the shutdown does not appear to have impacted the show's target release window.
House of the Dragon will debut on HBO Max in 2022.
Source: Collider