Alicent Hightower almost fell in love with Ser Criston Cole on House of the Dragon, reveals Emily Carey

Emily Carey, who plays Alicent Hightower in House of the Dragon, has revealed that her character was originally “in love” with Ser Criston Cole. In the fifth episode of the prequel series, Criston tells queen Alicent that he slept with her friend and stepdaughter Rhaenyra Targaryen. Carey said that this revelation was a “huge shock” for Alicent, completely changing the two characters’ dynamic.

That being said, in an interview with Variety, Carey mentioned that:

“She goes through so many emotions in one go — a concoction cocktail of all of these feelings. It’s the betrayal of, ‘Hold on. You slept with him, and I’m in love with him, and you know this. That’s not fair.’ Alicent is all about duty, through and through. It’s always duty versus heart with her… I’m glad that I got to show how she became this angry woman. And I think that scene is such a turning point.”

The young actress later added:

“There’s the betrayal of, ‘You lied to me.’ Then the betrayal of, ‘I swear this upon the memory of my mother,’ which is what you see in episode two with their shared trauma. It’s something that they bond over. Alicent took Rhaenyra to the Sept and showed this emotional vulnerability, and let her see this part of her that she doesn’t really show to anyone.”

Fans of House of the Dragon were surprised to learn that Alicent is in love with Criston. This is primarily because the show has not really alluded to any romantic feelings between them.

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Read more: 12 details you might have missed in House of The Dragon Episode 6