Thirteen years ago, Abigail Thorn began her career by setting up a camera and recording a philosophical discussion in front of a blank wall, posting it on YouTube under the title 'I Think, Therefore I Am'. This simple four-and-a-half-minute video pondering Descartes' famous saying marked the humble beginnings of what would become a remarkable dual career in digital content creation and mainstream entertainment.
From Philosophy Tube to Hollywood Fame
Today, Abigail has amassed an impressive 1.6 million followers on her Philosophy Tube channel, where she makes complex philosophical concepts accessible and entertaining for a broad audience. Her unique approach to breaking down ethical and philosophical conundrums has established her as a significant voice in online educational content.
Simultaneously, she has achieved notable success in major television productions, appearing as a fleet-leading warrior in HBO's House of the Dragon and as a Force-wielding coven member in the Star Wars series The Acolyte. Her transition from YouTube creator to mainstream actress represents a fascinating career evolution that few content creators manage to achieve.
Making an Impact in House of the Dragon
Introduced towards the end of season two as Sharako Lohar, Abigail's character immediately captured audience attention with her distinctive personality. As a Triarchy fleet leader who dominates conversations, expresses forward sexual appetite, and demonstrates fearlessness in battle, Sharako provided a refreshing contrast to other characters in the series.
The character's viral moment came with her blunt proposal to Tyland Lannister (played by Jefferson Hall) to sleep with her wives, offering comedic levity in a series otherwise dominated by battle and bloodshed. This memorable scene helped establish Sharako as a new fan favourite and demonstrated Abigail's ability to make an impact with limited screen time.
'I was really pleasantly surprised by the reception that Sharako got,' Abigail revealed in an exclusive interview. 'House of the Dragon fans are wonderful, lovely people, and I knew that I would only have a short time with Sharako in terms of the whole arc of the show. So I really thought, "Okay, I'm going to swing for the fences, and I'm going to do my best with this."'
The Action Star Dream
While Abigail cannot currently confirm whether she will return for House of the Dragon season three, despite her character being seen heading off on a ship into battle at the end of season two, she has been working on exciting new projects. She spent last summer working on what she describes as a 'Big Unnamed Action Project' that required months of training with a stunt team.
'I'm going to keep this muscle, because those are the kind of roles I want to play,' she notes, proudly showing off her physical transformation. 'You could think like Sigourney Weaver in Aliens, Linda Hamilton in Terminator. There's not that many other roles like this for women, and so it's really, really exciting to get to play a kind of female action star. It's an absolute dream come true.'
Returning to Intimate Theatre Roots
In stark contrast to the hundred-strong crew that accompanies House of the Dragon productions, Abigail's next project represents a return to more intimate storytelling. Blink, a two-person play about isolation, loneliness, and finding ways to be seen, arrives at the King's Head Theatre in London on 19th February.
The play sees Abigail playing Sophie, a young woman living alone in a flat in Leytonstone who, after her father's death, finds unexpected companionship with her neighbour Jonah (played by Joe Pitts) through the use of a baby monitor. This role represents a significant departure from her action-oriented television characters.
'Part of what drew me to Blink is Sophie is very, very different from Sharako, and so I really wanted to challenge myself,' Abigail explains. 'Sharako is someone who definitely jumps in with both feet and is ready to fight, and Sophie, bless her, is not a fighter. She's wounded and sad, and she does nothing to sort of hide that, really.'
Exploring Digital Connection and Visibility
Written by Phil Porter in 2009, Blink explores themes of digital connection and parasocial relationships that feel remarkably prescient in today's social media-dominated world. The play examines how people find connection, and even romance, through screens while experiencing profound loneliness in their physical lives.
'It's surprisingly prescient in a lot of ways,' Abigail observes. 'Even terms like parasocial relationship, which now would be kind of known to most people in the creative space, at the time, was not really spoken about. Sophie describes to the audience the video games she's been playing, and this is a play that predates Twitch.'
She adds: 'The idea that watching somebody play a video game and explaining it to you might someday become a dominant form of entertainment, way more so than theatre, I find really interesting. I hope the audience will be like, "Oh, wow. This is really unusual."'
Authentic Portrayal of Online Culture
Abigail believes Blink succeeds where other plays about digital culture have struggled by focusing on relationships and emotional aspects rather than attempting to create physical representations of internet architecture on stage.
'There's been a lot of plays, certainly over the last few decades, that have attempted to put the internet on stage, and many of them don't quite work,' she outlines. 'They try to create a physical architecture on a stage that represents the physical architecture of the Internet, rather than the relationships and the emotional aspects of digital relationships.'
'I think that is what Blink does. I think Blink puts the internet on stage in a fantastic way, without really meaning to, and without trying to. So I think that's what makes it a kind of fascinating, fascinating piece.'
She concludes with a reflection that connects her theatrical role to her YouTube origins: 'It's easier to talk to a camera than with a human being, and that's exactly what Sophie experiences. It's easier for her to live her entire life if she knows there's somebody watching, she so desperately wants to be seen.'
Blink runs at King's Head Theatre, London from 19th February to 22nd March, offering audiences a thoughtful exploration of digital connection in the modern age.
