Emily Carey, an openly queer English actress and model with a theater bloodline prefers she/they pronouns. Even though she has worked in big-budget movies & famous TV series earlier, her portrayal as young Alicent Hightower in House of the Dragon (2022) is of great significance.
The HBO fantasy series is a prequel to Game of Thrones and revolves around a particular royal family- the House Targaryen.
Their TV prominence started with the role of Grace Beauchamp in the daily soap Casualty (2014-17).
Many might know her for playing 12-year-old Diana in the DC movie Wonder Woman (2017) starring Gal Gadot. Also, she appeared as the younger version of the protagonist, Lara, in Tomb Raider (2018).
Where Is Emily Carey From? Age, Height, and Birthday
Born on April 30, 2003, Emily Joanna Carey is from Barnet, London, England. She is English by nationality.
As of 2022, Carey, who plays Alicent Hightower in House of the Dragon, is 19 years old. The actress has a height of 5 feet 4 inches (163 cm).
She is the only daughter of Sarah MacDonnell, an actress with on-screen works in Case 603 (2006) and Her Name Was Amy Tillman (2008). Also, Sarah is the owner of a talent agency Ardent Talent.
Though, details on her father remain under wraps.
Carey comes from a theater family; her aunt Joanna MacDonnell and great-uncle John MacDonnell worked at Holby City at the time of her birth. So, it resulted in Emily’s two-episode appearance as newly born.
Emily Carey’s great-grandparents (Pat MacDonnell and Vicky Fuggle) were in the entertainment industry too.
TV Debut In ‘Casualty’ And Film Debut In ‘Wonder Woman’
The London-born actress landed the role of Grace Beauchamp in the medical drama series Casualty in 2014. There, she worked for 3 years until 2017, with 41 episodes; later returned as a recurring cast in 2021.
It co-starred Derek Thompson, William Beck, Amanda Henderson, and Milo Clarke, among others.
In 2017, she made her feature film debut in the box-office hit DC comics super-hero movie Wonder Woman. It featured Gal Gadot in the role of Wonder Woman, while Carey appeared as 12-year-old Diana/Wonder Woman.
The film co-starred Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Danny Huston, Connie Nielsen, and Elena Anaya. It collected $822.8 million at the box office.
Then, Emily Carey portrayed 14-year-old Lara (grown-up version by actress Alicia Vikander), the protagonist, in the action-adventure Tom Raider (2018).
Carey even got her own lead, as the title character Anastasia in the fantasy movie Anastasia: Once Upon a Time (2020). There, she shared the screen with Amiah Miller, Brandon Routh, and Armando Gutierrez.
Other film credits:
- Where Is Anne Frank (2021) as Anne Frank (voice)
- Monster Family 2 (2021) as Mila Starr (voice)
- The Lost Girls (2022) as Wendy Darling
- The Canterville Ghost (2022) as Virginia Otis (voice)
Interesting Fact: She shares her birthday with ‘Wonder Woman’ star Gal Gadot. Both of them played Princess Diana/Wonder Woman in the movie, Career appeared as teen Diana.
Emily As Alicent Hightower In ‘House of the Dragon’
After TV roles in Houdini & Doyle and Get Even, Emily Carey marked her biggest career achievement as the cast in House of the Dragon (2022).
In the HBO series, which is a prequel to Game of Thrones, she portrays young Alicent Hightower, the daughter of King’s Hand, Ser Otto Hightower (actor Rhys Ifans). The grown-up Alicent Hightower is played by actress Olivia Cooke.
Emily’s character Alicent is a friend-turned-rival of princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (actress Milly Alcock, the grown-up version by actress Emma D’Arcy).
The fantasy series features the House Targaryen and its downfall- an event 200 years prior to Game of Thrones, based on George R. R. Martin’s novel A Song of Ice and Fire. Its casts include:
- Paddy Considine (as King Viserys Targaryen)
- Matt Smith (as Daemon Targaryen, Visery’s brother)
- Steve Toussaint (as Lord Corlys Valaryon)
- Eve Best (as Princess Rhaenys Targaryen)
- Sonoya Mizuno (as Mysaria, the trusted-ally of Daemon Targaryen)
- Graham McTavish (as Ser Harrold Westerling)
- Fabien Frankel (as Ser Criston Cole)
The ‘House of the Dragon’ premiered on August 21, 2022, and was renewed for Season 2 on August 26– only 5 days after the premiere.
Quick Fact On Alicent Hightower:
Carey’s character Alicent is much younger in the series than in the novel. Moreover, as per the original story in the book, she is not actually a close childhood friend of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen.
So, the chemistry between Alicent and Rhayenyra was purposeful, but some fans were upset & targeted Emily Carey, so she had to remain off from her Twitter for a while.
Openly Queer- Who Is Emily Carey Dating Now?
The Tomb Raider actress is openly queer since 2021– her Instagram posts spoke it all. Carey prefers the use of both she/they pronouns.
Currently, Emily Carey is in an alleged relationship with singer-songwriter Kellimarie Willis (b. October 27, 2002), who goes by Instagram (@kellimarie) and Twitter handle (@Kellimariemusic).
Kellimarie is a member of the pop music girl group Really Like You– they won The X Factor: The Band in 2019.
Often, the two share pictures of themselves together on Instagram. Not to mention, they have lots of artist friends in common with whom they hang out together.
In an Instagram post on August 16, 2022, Kellimarie shared a picture with Carey and captioned it “proud gf alert”. They had attended the Sky Group Premiere of House Of The Dragon in Leicester Square in London.
Dating Rumors With Rhys Bailey
Between late 2020 and mid-2021, there were dating rumors of Carey with actor Rhys Bailey. On an Instagram post of May 2021, both shared the same picture with the respective captions “my boy” and “my girl” sparking possibilities if they are boyfriend-girlfriend.
But it was not long as they crushed these rumors- they are nothing more than best friends.
‘Casualty’ Actress Took To Instagram To Open Up As Queer
Emily Carey first hinted about her coming out of the closet with an Instagram post on February 1, 2021. It featured the actress wearing rainbow-colored headwear and wrote “happy lgbt+ history month.”
These revelations went on a spree on Instagram during the pride month in 2021- it featured many rainbow-themed posts.
- June 25, 2021– A picture of the rainbow-colored meal and a postcard “pride” as she thanked her mom for the “gay donuts”
- June 27, 2021– Carey posed under a rainbow-themed balloon gate and wrote “posing like i’m ready to pounce on all the homophobes”
- August 30, 2021– Posed with her necklace that read “be gay do crime”
On July 3, 2022, she shares a series of pictures on Instagram captioned “happy pride party people” as she partied with her friends.
How Much Is Net Worth of Emily Carey?
Emily started from theatres to early TV screen fame in Casualty. Then, it saw her roles in the movies Wonder Woman, Tomb Raider, and Anastasia before casting as young Alicent in House of the Dragon.
As of 2022, Carey owns a net worth of $1.5 million.
No doubt, she made a decent salary from on-screen works, but also her modeling did a lot too. Since 2019, Emily Carey is signed with IMG models. The average salary of a model in the UK is £39570 per year.
On her Instagram, she promotes various brands like Giovanni Raspini (jewelry), Sif Jakobs Jewellery, Di Minno (footwear), Dior, Balenciaga, I Am Gia (clothing), Van Cleef & Arpels (jewelry), Urban Outfitters, and H&M.
Online sources report her earnings for each sponsored post are between $453 – $755.
Social Media:
- Instagram (@theemilycarey)
- Twitter (@TheEmilyCarey)
- Facebook page (@theemilycarey)
- TikTok (@theemilycarey)
For updates, stay connected with us.
