Phia Saban originally auditioned for the role of young Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon

House of the Dragon was not Phia Saban’s first rodeo in the realm of historical fantasy stories. She had already worked on The Last Kingdom on Netflix. The British actress plays the role of Haelaena Targaryen on HBO’s prequel show House of the Dragon.

Mild-mannered and innocent, Haelaena’s character requires a certain finesse to be portrayed brilliantly. Saban brings authenticity and wide-eyed innocence to the role which makes her character shine on screen. The makers of House of the Dragon scoured the lands while casting so that they only get the best talents on board.

Also Read: A famous funeral and a movie inspired the funeral scene from House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 2

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Phia Saban shares her audition experience for House of the Dragon

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In a recent interview with BBC Radio 1, Phia Saban shared how she landed the iconic role of Haelaena Targaryen in House of the Dragon. She revealed that she initially auditioned for the role of young Rhaenyra Targaryen which was eventually portrayed by Milly Alcock. Saban said,

“I did an audition self-tape for young Rhaenyra. And then I didn’t hear anything for like six months and then I was doing a job in Budapest and I came back for Christmas and um and I did a tape for Haelaena and then then I was like oh I really hope I get it and then I didn’t hear anything again for ages and then they said hey want a zoom I said yeah then I got the job thank god!”

In an alternate universe, it would have been interesting to see Saban capture Rhaenyra’s boldness and courage in the show. However, it’s for the best that she got cast as Haelaena since her personality fits into the role perfectly.

Ryan Condal previously confirmed that we will be seeing a lot more of Haelaena this season. She seems to be in the center of it all as his brother-husband goes to war for sustaining power and her entire family seems embroiled in a power struggle. As a young and delicate woman, all such events will impact her deeply.

Also Read: Phia and Tom had to petition for more Helaena and Aegon scenes in House of the Dragon Season 2

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