Olivia Cooke says reading House of the Dragon reviews online was ‘self-flagellating’

House of the Dragon fans love the cast of the show and they keep giving the fans more reasons to love them. The latest example comes in the form of a photoshoot involving Olivia Cooke, who plays the adult version of Alicent Hightower in House of the Dragon. Cooke shot to fame after being cast into the role. However, fame comes at a price, as she noted in an interview recently.

People have opinions, and they are not always positive. And it seems Cooke was not really prepared for that. She told Harper’s Bazaar, “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.”

“The Game of Thrones fans have been quite noisy, and having to block your ears and eyes from that has been a challenge. It’s like the school playground – you want to know what everyone is saying about you and what’s been said. 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.”

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