Olivia Cooke may currently be one of HBO’s most recognizable faces thanks to her performance as Alicent Hightower in House of the Dragon, but long before she stepped into Westeros, she took a shot at joining another beloved fantasy franchise and, according to Cooke herself, it did not go particularly well.
During a recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Cooke looked back at her experience auditioning for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The actress also addressed a long-standing rumor about another role in the franchise while candidly discussing one of the most disappointing rejections of her early career.
Quick Read:
- Olivia Cooke auditioned for Rey in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
- She denied rumors that she auditioned for Rose Tico.
- Cooke said “everyone and their dog” auditioned for Rey.
Olivia Cooke reveals why her rey audition never took off
Photograph by Theo Whiteman/HBO
Olivia Cooke first cleared up speculation that she had auditioned for Rose Tico, the character eventually played by Kelly Marie Tran in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. According to the actress, that rumor was never true. However, she did audition multiple times for the role that ultimately went to Daisy Ridley in The Force Awakens. Speaking about the process, Cooke recalled in the Happy Sad Confused podcast:
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“I did audition a few times for the other one, where Daisy Ridley got [the role of Rey]… The first one.”
She also acknowledged how competitive the casting process was for one of Hollywood’s most sought-after roles.
“But, like, everyone and their dog auditioned for that.”
Cooke explained that she auditioned more than once, including a session with director J.J. Abrams. Despite advancing through several rounds, she believes her performance simply was not good enough.
“I think I auditioned once in L.A. and then once with J.J. [Abrams]. And I was s—. I was really bad.”
The actress did not blame nerves, circumstances, or bad luck. Instead, she gave a brutally honest assessment of her own work.
“I was just bad. You know when you go into an audition, and you’re just not bringing it, and you’ve let yourself down, you’ve let everyone down in the room?”
What stands out about Cooke’s comments is the absence of bitterness. Many actors look back on missed opportunities and wonder what could have been, but Cooke appears completely at peace with the outcome. In fact, she praised Ridley’s performance and admitted that the role simply belonged to someone else.
“Daisy did such an amazing job. I just wasn’t that kind of actor at that time. It wasn’t a fit.”
That level of self-awareness feels refreshing, particularly in an industry where unsuccessful auditions are often discussed as near misses. Cooke’s perspective suggests that timing and preparation can be just as important as talent.
The audition rejection that broke Olivia Cooke’s heart
Credit: Ollie Upton/HBO
While missing out on Star Wars did not leave a lasting scar, Cooke admitted there was another project that hit her much harder. The actress recalled auditioning for the 2014 romantic drama Endless Love, a remake starring Alex Pettyfer. At the time, she was only 19 years old and desperately wanted the role.
“I’ve gotta get this.”
Cooke even progressed to a screen test and became convinced that landing the part could change everything for her career. Unfortunately, the role eventually went to Gabriella Wilde. The rejection devastated her.
“My agent rung me up like in the middle of the night in the U.K. ’cause they were in America and I wept into my childhood pillow in my childhood home.”
The disappointment felt so overwhelming that Cooke briefly questioned her future in the industry altogether.
“I was like my career is not gonna amount to anything because I didn’t get Endless Love.”
Following that setback, Cooke built an impressive résumé that includes acclaimed projects such as Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One, Sound of Metal, and eventually House of the Dragon. Her portrayal of Alicent Hightower has become one of the defining performances of HBO’s Game of Thrones universe, proving that a missed opportunity rarely tells the whole story.
As House of the Dragon continues its third season run, Cooke’s career appears stronger than ever. Still, one cannot help but wonder how different modern fantasy television might look if she had boarded the Millennium Falcon instead of eventually taking her place in the Red Keep.
