Filming on the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon has resumed following a brief COVID shutdown, and now lead actress Olivia Cooke has shared more about her role and the fantasy show in general. Cooke plays Queen Alicent Hightower in the prequel, which is set 100 years before the events of Game of Thrones. She wasn't able to give much away about her character, but she did tease that, like many Game of Thrones-universe characters, Hightower is complicated.

　　"She's very complex and I think people are gonna want to see the worst in her," Cooke explained to Collider. "What's amazing about Game of Thrones, like we saw in the past series, is that one season, you hate a character, and the next, you absolutely love them and will go to the ends of the earth for them. You just don't know what you're gonna get with these characters. They're so well-written. Such is the human condition, you can do some horrendous things, but then you can also do some wonderful things as well. It's very complex, and it's not black and white at all."

　　Cooke added that, it's helpful as an actress that House of the Dragon is set so much earlier in the timeline than Game of Thrones, so she doesn't have to "follow on from what anyone else is doing." The actress also teased the size and scale of the production, saying the crew working on The House of the Dragon is "a hundred strong" and that the sets are very impressive.

　　"The artistry involved is mind-blowing," she said. "The sets that have been created are f**king gorgeous, and the costumes. Down to the tiny prop that you hold in your hands, there's just so much thought that goes into it and so much history as well. It's amazing to work on a film, a TV show, or anything where everyone is just so passionate about it."

　　Doctor Who's Matt Smith and Harry Potter actor Rhys Ifans also star in the series. The show is expected to premiere on HBO Max in 2022.

　　In other news, it was recently reported that HBO is developing two additional Game of Thrones animated shows, bringing the total to three. However, development doesn't mean production, so there is no word on if any of them will actually go forward and be seen through to release. Meanwhile, it's also been reported that HBO recently canceled one of the other live-action Game of Thrones concepts, Flea Bottom.