It took less than a decade for Milly Alcock to transform from a kid making YouTube videos to a "House of the Dragon" star. And now that her run on the prequel has ended, the actor is reinventing herself once again.
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00:00It took less than a decade for Millie Alcock to transform from a kid making YouTube videos
00:05to a House of the Dragon star, and now that her run on the prequel has ended, the actor
00:09is reinventing herself once again.
00:11Millie Alcock knew she loved performing from a young age, but it's not something that was
00:15actively encouraged in her family home.
00:18Alcock grew up in a suburban neighborhood on the inner-west side of Sydney with her
00:21parents and two brothers, who were all much more interested in sports than the arts.
00:25But that just spurred on her passion even more.
00:27She later admitted to Vogue Australia,
00:29"...I think I got my interest in acting because everybody was uninterested in acting."
00:33While the rest of her family was focused on rugby, Alcock was soaking up the arts at school.
00:38Her first foray into acting was playing the lead in a primary school play, Little Red
00:42Rocking Hood, an outside-the-box adaptation of the classic fairy tale.
00:45Recalling the moment she officially fell in love with acting, Alcock told The Evening
00:49Standard,
00:50"...I had this euphoric feeling, and I was like, I want that, whatever that is.
00:53Yeah, I want to feel like that for the rest of my life."
00:55Alcock's love of acting evolved from there, and she continued to find ways to be creative
01:00on her own.
01:01She showed that she felt very comfortable in front of the camera by posting a series
01:04of lively videos on her YouTube channel, Millie Mae's Movies.
01:07"...I'm making a video today because I'm bored."
01:10Alcock didn't wind up starring on House of the Dragon by a happy accident.
01:14She demonstrated throughout her childhood that she was the kind of person who knew what
01:17she wanted and would work hard to get it, often taking her future into her own hands
01:21rather than leaving it up to others.
01:23Her passion for acting and strong sense of independence led her to make a huge decision
01:27at the tender age of 13.
01:29Without any input from her parents, she enrolled herself to Sydney's Newtown High School of
01:33the Performing Arts, a prestigious institution for aspiring actors.
01:37Only after she enrolled did she tell her parents that she had an audition for the school, which
01:41she obviously nailed.
01:42It was a different world when she arrived at the school, though, as Alcock discovered
01:45how seriously the other students took their interest in acting.
01:48She told Harper's Bazaar Australia,
01:50"...I arrived and all my classmates already had agents, but she simply took it upon herself
01:55to get caught up.
01:56She recalled to the outlet,
01:57"'So I started Googling agencies and calling them, saying, Hi, can you hire me?'
02:01Eventually, one did.
02:02I think I was literally about 13 at the time."
02:06Alcock's decision to go to acting school quickly paid off, as not long after securing an agent,
02:10she also landed her first professional acting job.
02:13Alcock broke into the Australian TV scene in 2014 with a small part in the romantic
02:17comedy-drama Wonderland.
02:19Nabbing the role in Wonderland officially got the ball rolling on Alcock's professional
02:23acting career, but it took a few more years before she secured another TV role.
02:28She found it tough to get established in the entertainment industry in Australia, which
02:31she described as being a world away from Hollywood.
02:34Alcock told The Evening Standard,
02:35"...The government really does not fund the arts.
02:37There's no appreciation of the arts at all.
02:40People don't go to the theatre, really.
02:41They can't afford it."
02:42After a few difficult years, Alcock's next role came in 2017, when she scored a supporting
02:47role in the dramatic miniseries High Life.
02:50This role opened more doors for Alcock, who made her feature debut in the horror movie
02:53The School before starring in five miniseries between 2018 and 2020.
02:58The most notable of these was Reckoning, which premiered on Netflix in 2020.
03:03Alcock appeared in all ten episodes of the psychological drama.
03:062019 was a big year for Alcock.
03:09Along with Reckoning, she co-starred on the TV show Upright.
03:12Alcock took on the part of troubled teenage runaway Meg Adams.
03:15The comedy-drama ran for two seasons.
03:17"...Meg is such a huge character, and I feel kind of a responsibility to do a really good
03:22job."
03:23Producer Chris Taylor has since revealed that the creative team behind Upright immediately
03:26knew Alcock was the perfect choice to play the raucous teen.
03:30Alcock received high praise for her role, and was even nominated for Best Comedy Performer
03:34at the 10th Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards.
03:38However, the role came with a crucial decision.
03:40Since filming would take her away from Sydney to the other side of the country, Alcock had
03:44to drop out of performing arts school.
03:46But she dove in headfirst and never doubted her decision.
03:48She recalled to Vogue,
03:49"...I knew that this opportunity would be so much more of a valuable experience than
03:53getting my piece of paper."
03:55Alcock enjoyed a particularly busy acting spell between 2017 and 2020, but found that
04:00things slowed down considerably that year following the COVID-19 pandemic.
04:04She did have a couple of projects released in 2020, like the short film Furlough, but
04:09that was filmed at the end of 2019.
04:11So the next year, Alcock found herself back in Sydney, living with her parents.
04:15Alcock's Upright co-star Tim Minchin detailed to News.com.au that he was worried about the
04:20knock-on effect this could have on her career.
04:22He told the outlet,
04:23"...Millie was on a roll, and then COVID came along and it's been tough for her.
04:27She was really just hitting her straps and had her career just completely roadblocked."
04:31Thankfully, House of the Dragon fans know this stagnant period of Alcock's career was
04:35only temporary, as bigger and more fantastical things were waiting just around the corner
04:39for her.
04:40But for the time being, the actor found herself living a relatively normal life at home, and
04:44even washing dishes in a local restaurant to supplement her income while she wasn't
04:48acting.
04:50Alcock's life started to return to normal in 2021, as she was able to resume going on
04:54auditions.
04:55One of these was for an unknown HBO show, which would eventually turn out to be the
04:58Golden Globe-winning Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon.
05:01For her audition, Alcock had to film herself and send it off to the producers.
05:05She roped in a friend to help with the dialogue of the script she'd been sent.
05:08It was from another HBO show, but had the names redacted.
05:11Her friend, however, recognized it immediately.
05:13Alcock recalled to the Evening Standard, he said,
05:15"'This is a Game of Thrones scene.
05:17This is a scene with Arya Stark.'"
05:18"'Obviously I couldn't tell anyone that I was auditioning for it.'"
05:22Alcock had never seen Game of Thrones before, so she had no idea what the scene was.
05:26But thanks to her friend cluing her in, she had a bit more insight for her interview.
05:30Just two weeks later, Alcock had signed on to the prequel as a younger version of Rhaenyra
05:34Targaryen, ancestor of Emilia Clarke's Daenerys Targaryen, the mother of dragons herself.
05:39Prior to starring in House of the Dragon, all of Alcock's acting roles had been filmed in
05:43Australia, so the HBO show, which was shot in London, marked a big transition for her.
05:47In many ways, House of the Dragon is very similar to its predecessor, since it's set
05:51in the same universe, but there are also huge differences between the two shows.
05:55So while Alcock did do her homework on all things Game of Thrones, she didn't want her
05:59performance to be too influenced by it.
06:02Alcock has since explained that the true inspiration behind the creation of Rhaenyra came from
06:06Cate Blanchett in The Golden Age and Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday.
06:10And instead of the popular Game of Thrones television series, Alcock felt the books were
06:13more influential on her performance.
06:15Alcock also credits director Miguel Schepanchenik and showrunner Ryan Condal with helping to
06:20shape her character.
06:21She explains to The Hollywood Reporter,
06:23"...she's quite stoic in the way that she, like, presents herself, and I'm quite her
06:26fidgety person, and Ryan and Miguel keep reminding me that they're strength in stillness.
06:31She doesn't have to prove herself.
06:32She has that status."
06:34"...Rhaenyra Targaryen, princess of Dragonstone, and heir to the Iron Throne."
06:41The transformation into Rhaenyra came with a steep learning curve that also involved
06:44memorizing copious amounts of High Valyrian and learning how to ride both real horses
06:49and a mechanical dragon.
06:51When House of the Dragon premiered on HBO in 2022, playing young Rhaenyra Targaryen
06:55was arguably the biggest role of Alcock's career to date.
06:59And while she found it exciting to step into such an epic world, it also catapulted her
07:03into Hollywood in a big way, and life in the spotlight has taken some getting used
07:07to.
07:08Speaking to Complex about this huge transition, she said,
07:10"...it was completely life-changing in every aspect.
07:12I feel like I changed as an actor and as a person.
07:15I changed physically."
07:16That physical change included leaving Australia and moving to London permanently.
07:20And while Alcock is grateful for the opportunities that the show has afforded her, such as getting
07:24cast as Supergirl in James Gunn's DC Universe, she's also had to contend with a new level
07:29of fame that has left her feeling a little uneasy.
07:31She said of adjusting to her newfound status in Hollywood,
07:34"...it was completely overwhelming, incredibly challenging, and indefinitely rewarding in
07:38every aspect.
07:39But it was a battle."
07:40But Alcock's passion for acting has kept her grounded in the midst of her rising celebrity.
07:45She even found some common ground with her character, as she felt that she and Rhaenyra
07:48were both traversing uncharted territory together.
07:52Alcock reprised the role of young Rhaenyra Targaryen for House of the Dragon season 2
07:56in 2024, but like the show's fans, she had a lot of downtime between seasons.
08:00When she wasn't acting, she found comfort behind the camera, having taken up photography
08:04during the pandemic.
08:05She enjoys finding the beauty in simple things, and sharing it with the world through her
08:09unique point of view.
08:10Her Instagram page is now littered with her shots, such as the one she titled The Children
08:15of Peri.
08:16She explained to Flaunt,
08:17"...beauty is completely subjective.
08:19Some people might see the photo of the kids in Paris and say, oh, the composition is wrong,
08:23it's a bit slanted.
08:24I think the beauty is in the mistakes because it's alive."
08:27It's clear from the way she talks about the picture that Alcock is more interested in
08:30conveying real people and stories in her work than capturing something purely aesthetic.
08:35She also enjoys the anonymity of being behind the camera, as Alcock has often said she's
08:39tired of seeing her own face and prefers to be out of the spotlight.
08:43While she has yet to seek opportunities behind the camera professionally, it's certainly
08:46possible fans will see more of Alcock's work, especially if she combines her passions in
08:51acting and photography to expand her horizons as a storyteller.
08:55Alcock filmed the final scenes for House of the Dragon season 2 in the spring of 2023,
09:00which has since confirmed that she won't return to the Game of Thrones prequel following
09:03her final appearance in episode 4.
09:05"...it's their story to tell now, and I'm really excited to watch them."
09:08Alcock quickly moved on with another big acting role, but took her career in a different direction
09:12— to the theater.
09:13In the summer of the same year, she made her West End debut, starring as Abigail Williams
09:18in a revival of Arthur Miller's The Crucible.
09:20Alcock gushed as she announced her new role on Instagram,
09:22"...words cannot describe what a dream come true this is."
09:25Making the move to theater is one Alcock had been planning for a while.
09:29After finishing the first season of House of the Dragon, Alcock announced her desire
09:32to strut her stuff on the stage during her interview with Flaunt.
09:35She told the outlet,
09:36"...I think it would be something that would help me hone my skills as an actor, and I
09:39think it would make me feel more legitimized, if that makes sense.
09:42To have that experience on stage that happens just once in that moment, and it's such a
09:46shared experience with the audience."