‘House of the Dragon’ Star Olivia Cooke Breaks Down Alicent’s Emotional Response to Otto’s Execution
House of the Dragon delivered one of its biggest moments yet in Season 3, Episode 2, and it could completely change the relationship between Rhaenyra Targaryen and Alicent Hightower.
According to an interview with PEOPLE, stars Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke shared their thoughts on the shocking ending, explaining how Otto Hightower’s death affects both women going forward.
The episode sees Rhaenyra return to King’s Landing and finally sit on the Iron Throne. The moment only happens because Alicent secretly helps create an opening after Aemond leaves the city. Alicent believes she has reached an agreement with her former friend and plans to leave with her daughter Helaena before the situation gets any worse.
Everything changes when Otto Hightower unexpectedly appears in the throne room. Otto, who has been absent since the Season 2 finale, comes face to face with Rhaenyra. Daemon pushes Rhaenyra to act, and after an emotional confrontation, she executes Otto by beheading him.
The timing could not be worse. Alicent arrives moments later with Helaena and walks into the throne room just as her father’s body lies before everyone. The scene instantly destroys any hope that the fragile understanding between Alicent and Rhaenyra could survive.
Speaking to PEOPLE, Olivia Cooke said Alicent has no idea what really happened before she entered the room. “There’s a lot that Alicent doesn’t understand,” Cooke explained. “[She] doesn’t know what’s happened.” Cooke said Alicent’s focus before that moment was simply escaping with Helaena rather than thinking about politics or power.
“I think she’s just like, okay, I’ve made this bargain with Rhaenyra. I need to enact that, grab Helena and get the f— out of there before it all goes to s—,” she said.
From Alicent’s point of view, all she sees is Rhaenyra publicly executing her father. She has no knowledge of Otto’s recent actions or why he was there. Because of that, she immediately assumes the worst.
“She just beheaded my dad. In front of everyone. She doesn’t know where Otto has been, so for all she knows, he’s been held prisoner by [Rhaenyra],” Cooke said. “This feels like a very public display of this assertion of power. I think Alicent is just like, ‘Okay, well, f— you.’”
Emma D’Arcy also spoke to PEOPLE about what this moment means for Rhaenyra. While the execution helps secure her position as ruler, D’Arcy believes it comes with a heavy emotional cost.
“I think there’s an important point that the show makes about rulers of any kind being insulated from their acts of violence. And in this moment, Rhaenyra’s not insulated. In fact, she’s subject to the kind of viscerality and horror of violence,” D’Arcy said. “I think there’s a threshold that gets crossed in that moment, for better or for worse.”
D’Arcy also described Otto’s execution as more than just a political move. While it sends a message to everyone watching inside the throne room, it is also deeply personal because of Otto’s long history with Rhaenyra’s family. “There’s an optics game going on. But this is a man who is your father’s best friend, and so, in a way, can you be anything but a child in his gaze? I don’t think so,” D’Arcy explained.
For the actor, the goal of the scene was to show that Rhaenyra leaves part of her old life behind when she claims the Iron Throne. “What I wanted to achieve was to sort of strip her of her childhood, by the time she takes the throne,” D’Arcy said.
Otto Hightower’s death is likely to have major consequences for the rest of Season 3. Alicent now believes Rhaenyra murdered her father in front of the court as a display of strength, while Rhaenyra has crossed a personal line that cannot easily be undone.
According to the cast’s comments to PEOPLE, the shocking ending is not just another death in the Dance of the Dragons. It is the moment that permanently changes both women and makes any true reconciliation even more difficult.
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