HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon has added two more stars to its cast. Milly Alcock and Emily Carey will each be recurring guest stars in the first season of the fantasy drama set hundreds of years before Game of Thrones‘ events. Alcock is playing the younger version of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, the king’s first-born child, born of pure Valyrian blood, and a dragon rider. Many would say that Rhaenyra was born with everything except that she was not born a man. Emma D’Arcy plays the adult Rhaenyra in the series, who becomes embroiled in the civil war that threatens to bring down House Targaryen.
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Carey plays the young Alicent Hightower. She is the daughter of Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King, and the most comely woman in the Seven Kingdoms. She was raised in the Red Keep, close to the king and his innermost circle, and she possesses both a courtly grace and a keen political acumen. Olivia Cooke plays adult Alicent in the series.
HBO gave House of the Dragon a straight-to-series order for 10 episodes. Miguel Sapochnik and Ryan Condal will serve as co-showrunners as well as executive producers with Martin and Vince Gerardis. HBO hopes to see the series debut in 2022. Production began in April.
Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin co-created the new prequel series, one of several in development, with Condal, based on Martin’s book Fire & Blood. The show’s cast also includes Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, Steve Toussaint, Rhys Ifans, Eve Best, Sonoya Mizuno, and Fabien Frankel.
“The Game of Thrones universe is so rich with stories,” said HBO programming president Casey Bloys in a statement announcing the series in September 2019. “We look forward to exploring the origins of House Targaryen and the earlier days of Westeros along with Miguel, Ryan and George.”
WarnerMedia CEO Ryan Kilar talked up the series at a recent Variety event. “I’m just so excited because the world that exists in Westeros and the broader landscape and the characters,” Kilar said. “The Targaryens are about as crazy as they get. It’s literally the essence of good drama.”
What do you think of these new cast members joining House of the Dragon? Are you looking forward to the first Game of Thrones spinoff show? Let us know how you feel about it in the comments. House of the Dragon is now in production.
