As I delve deeper into the captivating journey of Milly Alcock, I am utterly enchanted by her resilience and versatility. From gracing our screens as the young Rhaenyra Targaryen to venturing behind the camera as a budding photographer, she has truly embraced the unpredictable tapestry of life with open arms.
In 2022, Amelia “Milly” Alcock made a big impact worldwide as she portrayed Young Rhaenyra Targaryen in the “Game of Thrones” spin-off series, “House of the Dragon.” Milly shares this role with Emma D’Arcy and is only seen in flashbacks that take place 20 years before the primary storyline. Over the course of two seasons, Alcock appeared in seven episodes within the fantasy drama before she relinquished control over the character to D’Arcy permanently.
So far, playing the Targaryen princess has been the most significant role in Alcock’s career, a part she feels incredibly fortunate to have landed at such a young age. Despite concluding her time on the series after Season 2, she anticipates that this experience will lead to numerous opportunities in the future. In her own words, “Now I can embark on all the exciting projects I’ve always dreamed of, and I’m still discovering what my true passion is. Dreams shouldn’t come true at 21 and 22,” she said.
As a devoted fan, I can’t help but marvel at the incredible journey Milly Alcock has embarked upon since her humble beginnings in “Wonderland” back in 2014. Though she may be uncertain about what lies ahead post-“House of the Dragon,” it’s undeniable that she’s already made an indelible mark on the industry. For those who might not know much about this talented Australian actress, let’s delve into the fascinating transformation of Milly Alcock.
Milly Alcock wasn’t encouraged to pursue acting as a child
From a young age, Milly Alcock nurtured a deep love for acting, but this wasn’t a pursuit that was particularly supported at home. Growing up in the inner west of Sydney, Alcock shared her home with her parents and two sports-oriented brothers. Yet, their indifference towards acting fueled her passion even further. As she confessed to Vogue Australia later on, “I think I developed my interest in acting because everyone was disinterested in acting.”
Instead of devoting her time to rugby like the rest of her family, Alcock immersed herself in the arts during school. Her initial taste of acting came when she starred as the main character in a primary school play titled “Little Red Rocking Hood,” a unique interpretation of the traditional fairy tale. Speaking about the instance that sparked her passion for acting, Alcock shared with the Evening Standard: “I had this incredible sense of elation. And I thought, ‘I want to experience that again and again.’ Yes, I desire to feel that way throughout my life.”
From that moment on, my passion for performing only grew stronger. I started seeking outlets to express my creativity independently. I put myself out there, sharing a collection of vibrant videos on my YouTube channel, “MillyMaysMovies,” demonstrating my ease and confidence in front of the camera.
She took her future into her own hands at age 13
Milly Alcock didn’t land the role on “House of the Dragon” by chance; instead, her determination and self-driven nature were evident from childhood, as she consistently pursued her aspirations with dedication and often took charge of her future, rather than relying on others to make decisions for her.
At the tender age of 13, fueled by my burning passion for acting and unwavering independence, I boldly took charge of my destiny. Without a hint of consultation from my folks, I bravely enrolled myself into the esteemed Newtown High School of the Performing Arts in Sydney – a beacon for aspiring actors. It was only after I had secured my place that I shared the thrilling news with my parents, proudly informing them about my successful audition for the school.
When she stepped into the school, it was a whole new environment for her, as Alcock realized that her fellow students were deeply committed to their acting pursuits. “When I got there, all my classmates already had agents,” Alcock shared with Harper’s Bazaar Australia. Eager to join in, she took matters into her own hands. “So I began searching for agencies online and cold-calling them, saying, ‘Hello, will you hire me?’ Eventually, one did. I was around 13 years old at the time,” she reminisced.
Alcock learned an important lesson after landing her first role
Milly Alcock swiftly reaped the benefits of her choice to attend acting school, as she soon secured both an agent and her first professional acting role. Making her debut on the Australian television landscape in 2014, Alcock starred in the romantic comedy-drama “Wonderland.” This series chronicled the lives of four couples residing within Sydney’s iconic Wonderland apartment building.
In Season 2, Episode 7 of the series, Alcock made an appearance as Character 1, a teenage girl. Although this was just a minor role, it provided Alcock with a crucial insight about her professional journey. Prior to securing this part in “Wonderland”, Alcock had been trying out for roles extensively. This experience showed her the cut-throat nature of the entertainment business.
She felt grateful to have learned the lesson at a young age, as it enabled her to handle her anxiety during auditions better. In her perspective, art is often subjective and typically beyond one’s control. Therefore, she approaches each audition with the mindset that she may either land the role and experience a change or not, and in either case, there’s no need for excessive worry. This is how she expressed her thoughts on auditions to Wonderland magazine as reported by Town and Country.
Starting her professional career in Australia was tough
Milly Alcock kicked off her professional acting career when she landed a minor part in “Wonderland”. However, it took additional years for Alcock, who was still attending school, to secure another TV role. She faced challenges breaking into the entertainment industry in Australia, which she considered as being almost a completely different universe compared to Hollywood. As Alcock explained to the Evening Standard, the government doesn’t provide much support for the arts, and people generally can’t afford to attend theater performances due to the lack of appreciation for the arts.
2017 rolled around, marking a breakthrough in my acting journey with a gripping supporting role in the dramatic miniseries “High Life.” I stepped into the shoes of Isabella Barrett, elder sibling to Genevieve, portrayed by Odessa Young. Her life appeared perfect, but as we delved deeper, the cracks began to show as she battled bipolar disorder and experienced her initial manic episode.
Since taking on the role that marked her feature film debut as Jien in the horror movie “The School,” Alcock has starred in five miniseries between 2018 and 2020. Among these, her most prominent appearance was in “Reckoning,” which initially aired on Sony’s AXN channel in 2019 before streaming on Netflix the following year. In this series, she acted alongside Sam Trammell, known for his roles in “True Blood” and “Homeland,” as well as Simone Kessell, who has appeared in “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and “Yellowjackets.” Alcock played a part in all 10 episodes of the psychological drama, making it her most extensive television role to date.
Milly Alcock dropped out of school for a dream role
2019 proved to be a significant year for Milly Alcock, with not one but two major TV roles. First came “Reckoning,” followed by an offer to star alongside Tim Minchin in “Upright.” In this series, Alcock portrayed Megan “Meg” Adams, a troubled teenage runaway, while Minchin played Lachlan “Lucky” Flynn. The comedy-drama spanned two seasons and chronicled the adventures of these unusual travel companions as they embarked on a road trip across Australia. Their journey began with the aim of delivering an upright piano to Lucky’s ailing mother in Perth, followed by a quest to find Meg’s missing mother deep within the Queensland rainforest.
Chris Taylor, the producer, has disclosed that the creative team behind “Upright” instinctively felt that Alcock was an ideal fit to portray the boisterous teenager. Alcock’s performance in this role earned her considerable acclaim and even secured a nomination for best comedy performer at the 10th Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards.
In Alcock’s career, the pivotal role presented a significant choice: as filming would transport her from Sydney to another part of the country and necessitate dropping out of performing arts school, she made the bold move to seize it without hesitation. Reflecting on this decision later, she told Vogue, “I knew that the experience this opportunity offered was far more valuable than any certificate I could earn.” She also gained invaluable insights from her co-star, Minchin, who instilled in her a self-trust that she has carried with her into every subsequent role. As she put it to Harper’s Bazaar, “He taught me to trust myself in a way that I’ve applied to each role since.”
The pandemic slowed her career down temporarily
Between 2017 and 2020, Milly Alcock had a very active acting period, but after the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, things became much quieter for her. Although a few projects of hers came out that year, like the short film “Furlough,” it was actually filmed at the end of 2019. As a result, Alcock spent most of 2020 back in Sydney, living with her parents.
Tim Minchin, Alcock’s co-star, expressed concern about the potential impact of the situation on Milly’s career to News.com.au. He stated that “Milly was on a roll… but then COVID happened and it’s been tough for her… she had really started gaining momentum and her career suddenly came to a screeching halt.”
Fortunately, fans of “House of the Dragon” can see that Alcock’s career lull was brief, as exciting and magical opportunities lay in store for her soon. However, during this phase, the actor adapted to a more ordinary lifestyle, residing at home and even washing dishes at a nearby eatery to make ends meet when she wasn’t acting on set.
She had no idea she was auditioning for House of the Dragon
2021 marked a return to my usual rhythm as an actor, with auditions back on the schedule again. One of these opportunities turned out to be something extraordinary – an unnamed HBO production that later became the critically acclaimed “Game of Thrones” prequel, “House of the Dragon.” Set 200 years prior to the original series, this role took me on a journey I could never have imagined.
For her audition, Alcock filmed herself and submitted it to the producers. She enlisted a friend to assist with the dialogue from the script she received. Interestingly enough, this script was from another HBO series but had the names censored. Yet, her friend identified it right away. “He exclaimed, ‘This is a scene from Game of Thrones. This is Arya Stark’s scene,'” she told the Evening Standard.
Prior to her interview, Alcock hadn’t watched “Game of Thrones,” which left her unfamiliar with the scene. However, thanks to a hint from a friend, she gained a little more understanding. Amazingly, only two weeks later, Alcock landed the role in the prequel, portraying the younger version of Rhaenyra Targaryen, who is an ancestor of Emilia Clarke’s Daenerys Targaryen, the iconic “Mother of Dragons.”
Playing Rhaenyra Targaryen required a serious transformation
Before my role in “House of the Dragon,” all my acting gigs had been filmed in Australia, so stepping onto the London set for this HBO show felt like a significant leap for me. Although “House of the Dragon” shares the same universe as its predecessor, there are considerable distinctions between the two series. So, while I made sure to brush up on every detail from “Game of Thrones” (by binge-watching the entire series in just two weeks!), I didn’t want my portrayal to be overly reminiscent of Emilia Clarke or too heavily influenced by it.
Alcock later revealed that the characters Cate Blanchett portrayed in “The Golden Age” and Audrey Hepburn in “Roman Holiday” served as the primary inspirations for creating Rhaenyra. She found the books to be significantly more impactful on her performance compared to the popular “Game of Thrones” TV series.
Actress Emma D’Arcy is thankful to director Miguel Sapochnik and showrunner Ryan Condel for assisting in the development of her character, Rhaenyra. As D’Arcy is quite restless by nature, she found it challenging to portray Rhaenyra, who is rather stoic. However, both Sapochnik and Condel repeatedly emphasized that stillness can convey strength, and that Rhaenyra doesn’t need to constantly prove herself because of her established status.
House of the Dragon completely changed her life
So far, the most significant role of Milly Alcock’s acting career was undeniably playing Young Rhaenyra Targaryen when “House of the Dragon” debuted on HBO in 2022. Jumping into such a grand universe was thrilling for her, but it also swiftly propelled her into the limelight of Hollywood. Adjusting to life under the public eye has been an adjustment she’s had to learn.
Discussing the major shift with Complex, she stated: “This transformation affected me on all fronts – as an actress, as a person, and even physically. I’ve undergone a significant change.” This transformation involved relocating from Australia to permanently reside in London. Although she is thankful for the roles that the show has provided her, such as being cast as Supergirl in James Gunn’s DC Universe, she has also had to deal with a new degree of fame that has made her feel somewhat uncomfortable. “This was an overpowering, extremely difficult, and ultimately enriching experience,” she said about adapting to her new role in Hollywood. “But it was a struggle.”
1. Her love for acting has helped her stay down-to-earth amidst growing fame. Interestingly, Alcock discovered a shared experience with her role as they both seemed to be exploring new and unknown paths, though in distinctly different ways.
She likes to spend her downtime behind the camera
Milly Alcock reprised the role of Young Rhaenyra Targaryen for “House of the Dragon” Season 2 in 2024, but like the show’s fans, she had a lot of downtime between seasons. When she wasn’t acting, Alcock found comfort behind the camera, having taken up photography during the pandemic. She enjoys finding the beauty in simple things and sharing it with the world through her unique point of view. Her Instagram page is now littered with her shots, such as the one she titled “The children of Pari.” “Beauty is completely subjective. Some people might see the photo of the kids in Paris and say, ‘Oh the composition is wrong — it’s a bit slanted.’ I think the beauty is in the mistakes because it’s alive,” she explained to Flaunt.
It’s evident that Alcock focuses on depicting real individuals and narratives rather than just creating aesthetically pleasing images through her photographs. Moreover, she appreciates the privacy that comes with being a photographer, having expressed her discomfort with constantly seeing her own image and preferring to stay out of the limelight. Although Alcock hasn’t pursued professional opportunities behind the camera yet, it’s likely that fans will witness more of her work, particularly if she merges her passions for acting and photography to broaden her storytelling capabilities in the future.
Milly Alcock turned her attention to the stage in 2023
In the spring of 2023, Milly Alcock wrapped up her last scenes for “House of the Dragon” Season 2 and subsequently revealed that she wouldn’t be reprising her character in the “Game of Thrones” spin-off beyond Episode 4. Following this, Alcock ventured into a new acting opportunity by diving into theater work. In the summer of the same year, she made her West End debut, playing Abigail Williams in a revival of Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible.” Overjoyed with her new role, Alcock expressed on Instagram that being part of this production was an unparalleled dream come true for her.
After wrapping up the first season of “House of the Dragon,” I, Emily Alcock, have expressed my eagerness to step into the world of theater. During an interview with Flaunt, I shared my aspiration to grace the stage. I believe this move would provide me with an opportunity to refine my acting skills and give me a sense of validation. As I put it, “I think it would be something that would help me hone my craft as an actor, and I believe it would make me feel more legitimized, if that makes sense.” The thrill of live performance, where the experience is unique to each moment and shared with the audience, is what draws me to theater. Notably, I’ve had the privilege of performing in “The Crucible” alongside Brian Gleeson from “The Mandalorian” and Caitlin Fitzgerald from “Succession.” Critics have praised our performance.
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2024-08-23 14:31