Interview
“She never felt pure”: Olivia Cooke explains how Alicent felt about her intimate relationship with Criston Cole
The lake gives her a moment of clarity.
Many expected themes of revenge, betrayal, sex, and even bloody conflicts in House of the Dragon season 2. Yet, the passionate affair between Alicent and Criston Cole probably came as a surprise to most viewers. However, though most would assume it was out of love, apparently Alicent doesn’t view it like that.
Alicent’s relationship with Cole made her feel impure
Queen Alicent Hightower indulged in adultery with Ser Criston Cole just days after King Viserys’ death. But her actions did not make her happy. In an interview with Time Magazine, Olivia Cooke recalled,
“There’s a theme with her feeling shamed and unclean throughout the season. We saw Alicent with Ser Criston Cole and what happened in the aftermath of her being romantically involved with him. She never felt pure from that moment on.”
Credit: HBO
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Why does Alicent go to the lake?
In the latest episode of House of the Dragon, there’s a peculiar scene where Alicent goes to the woods with Ser Rickard Thorne to contemplate her actions and think about her next move. Cooke explains, “There’s this compulsion to scrub her skin raw in order to purge the rot from what she did and how she feels she is to blame. This felt like a baptism.
Stripping the outer layer, and that f-cking collar [laughs]. Her getting into the lake on her own is embryonic, in a way. It’s weirdly a coming-of-age moment for Alicent—the start of the rest of her life, what she’s about to do, and the woman she’s possibly about to become.”
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