Joe Keery: biography
Young aspiring American actor and singer Joe Keery has gone from delivering pizza to the performance of one of the main characters of the series Stranger things. Success overtook the young man so quickly that he still has not decided what exactly he plans to do next. One thing is clear — such a charismatic young man will not be forgotten, no matter how his creative biography will develop.
Childhood and youth
Joseph David Keery was born in April 1992 in a big family consisting of five children (two out of them were twins). His zodiac sign is Taurus. The birthplace of the man is the city of Newburyport, in Massachusetts, U.S. One of his relatives insisted that Keery should begin to engage in acting.
The charismatic guy combined his high school studies with a theater club, and his sister controlled that Joe attended all classes. This care was soon paid off; people started noticing the boy's talent already back then. A couple of years later, Keery received a degree in Theater School, which was a part of the University of Chicago.
He participated in productions that later became proper training for a large number of American actors. It was a significant working experience and a full course of studying acting skills that in the future, helped him get one of the central parts in Stranger Things.
Movies
The way the actor got the desired part was not easy. It did not help even that the debut series in the young man's filmography, Chicago Fire and Empire became popular. Still, it took him a long time to get a significant role in a movie. According to some reports, Keery went through at least 100 different auditions before he was invited to at least one project. However, such a large number of failures did not break the guy — he did not give up for a moment.
The audition for Stranger Things did not go easy either. Joe sent videos of himself and could not get an answer for a long time. He tried himself as a character named Jonathan Byers (played by Charlie Heaton), who is Will's older brother.
After two months, the studio asked Joe to read Steve's monologue on Skype. Only after two weeks, the directors of the mystery series replied that he was approved for one of the roles, but at that time the script was not yet fully ready. That crucial moment defined Keery's life.
As the guy claimed in one interview, he did not know what the show would be like in the end, but he was still happy to have a permanent job. Besides, Joe wasn't fully aware of what Jonathan was going to be like, while he began to feel close to Steve soon enough. For season two of Stranger Things, this character was developing most rapidly, every episode he grew and became more complex.
From the very first episode, Steve appeared before the audience in the form of a classic bully and sex symbol with the perfect hair and the perfect girl (played by a young actress Natalia Dyer). But later, after experiencing some events, he grew up, gave up his pride, made friends with the character of Gaten Matarazzo, and also learned to care for the people around him.
That's what the actor himself thinks about his character:
"I feel like Steve has enough qualities that make him a jerk and to some extent, a lone wolf. He is probably not the brightest guy in town, but I think that Steve is always somehow driven by good intentions."
Few people know, but in addition to acting, Joseph is engaged in music. These two passions accompany him from a young age and bring the actor a lot of joy.
"Having the opportunity to do both professionally is one of the best things on the planet, and so I'm happy," says Keery.
For a long time, Joe has been part of a band called Post Animal, where he is responsible for bass and vocals. The American prefers to attribute the style of the musical band to psychedelic rock ' n ' roll. Post Animal released several popular records in the USA and also went on tour all over the country.
Given the success of Joseph in the acting field, it could be assumed that the rock band is doomed to even greater recognition, but the musicians decided to close the project. Keery and his teammates concluded that they did not want their compositions to be associated with the series Stranger Things.
It was essential to them that listeners first of all paid attention to the talent and diligence of guys. The actor considers it necessary for his bandmates to create their name and does not want to interfere with them in any way. Of course, Joseph does not deny that at one point, when the hype subsides a little, they will have a new opportunity to get together and release a couple of successful singles.
"It's real creativity when you get just to sit down, compose a few songs while having fun and fooling around, and later share the result with friends and fans."
To some extent, Joe Keery has not yet fully come to terms with the annoying paparazzi and attention from the tabloids but admitted that it is very helpful to become famous so quickly. Joe gratefully refers to the positive responses to his work and never ceases to mention that he is proud to say that he took part in the creation of the most successful teen series in the last ten years.
The actor says that just a few years before this project, he unsuccessfully tried to start working on at least some role and could not even dream of such a plan that would be watched by literally everyone. He is incredibly grateful for the opportunity because now Joe has a chance to try his hand at other movies and T.V. series.
He doesn't get a lot of days off, but Joseph uses them wisely and tries to have a good rest. He is fond of traveling, reading, writing letters, and spending time with his little sister.
Personal life
The personal life of this charismatic American is not worse than professional. The actor met Maika Monroe from the horror movie It Follows in 2017. The young people hit it off right away.
On their Instagram, they often share profiles photos that show a strong emotional attachment but try not to tell details about whether they live together and how they like to spend time. According to some rumors, now Keery and his girlfriend are preparing for the wedding.
The actor is 5 feet 9 inches tall, and he weighs 160 pounds.
Joe Keery now
Joe Keery has a net worth of $2.7 million. Now Joe continues to receive invitations to various projects. Already in 2020, viewers will see the celebrity in the large-scale action movie Free Guy starring Ryan Reynolds and the star of Killing Eve, Jodie Comer. This film will tell you about a character who suddenly realized that he lives in a video game, and now he needs to stop shutting it down.
Shawn Levy, the producer of Stranger Things, is going to direct it. The film is rumored to be a reference to the cult film The Truman Show. Most likely, Keery will play the role of NPC — a non-player character needed for the player to pass through the plot.
Filmography
- 2015 - Chicago Fire
- 2015 - Sirens
- 2015 - Henry Gamble's Birthday Party
- 2015 - Empire
- 2016 - The Charnel House
- 2016-present - Stranger Things
- 2017 - Molly's Game
- 2019 - How to Be Alone
