Joseph David "Joe" Keery (born April 24, 1992) is an American actor and musician. He is best known for his role as Steve Harrington in the American science-fiction horror TV series, Stranger Things.
Early life
Joe Keery grew up in Newburyport, Massachusetts. He attended River Valley Charter School for elementary and middle school then attended Newburyport High School. He is the second of five children and grew up surrounded by sisters. He began acting in high school, performing initially at his sister's insistence. Keery went on to study at The Theatre School at DePaul University and graduated in 2014.
Career
After graduating from DePaul, Keery went to over a hundred auditions. Before his breakout role in Stranger Things, Keery appeared in a KFC and Domino's commercial and had roles in Empire and Chicago Fire. His first appearance in a full-length film was in Stephen Cone's indie, Henry Gamble's Birthday Party. He was promoted from recurring cast to a series regular for the second season of Stranger Things, which premiered on October 27, 2017.
Music
Aside from acting, Keery is also a musician. He was previously a guitarist/vocalist for Chicago-based garage and psych-rock band Post Animal. Their debut full-length album was released in October 2015. He is no longer a part of the band, but still performs with them on some occasions.
Previously, Keery released music under the name "Cool Cool Cool".
Since July 2019, when he released his first album "Twenty Twenty", Joe has been making music under the name "Djo". His newest album "Decide" released on September 16, 2022.
Influences
His acting influences are Sylvester Stallone, Emma Stone and Kristen Stewart.
His music influences are Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Tame Impala and Black Sabbath.
His favorite movies are Indiana Jones movies and Star Wars movies.
His favorite TV show beside Stranger Things is Smart Guy (1997-1999).
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
2015 | Henry Gamble's Birthday Party | Gabe |
2016 | The Charnel House | Scott |
2017 | Molly's Game | Cole |
Shotgun | Chris | |
2018 | Slice | Jackson |
2019 | How to Be Alone | Jack |
2020 | Spree | Kurt |
2021 | Free Guy | Keys |
2023 | Finalmente l'alba | Sean Lockwood |
2024 | Marmalade | Baron |
TBA | Cold Storage | Travis Meacham |
Television
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
2015 | Sirens | Scenester |
Chicago Fire | Emmett | |
Empire | Tony Trichter III | |
2016-present | Stranger Things | Steve Harrington |
2019-2021 | No Activity | Officer Ed Reinhardt |
2020 | Death to 2020 | Duke Goolies |
2021 | Death to 2021 | |
2023 | Fargo | Gator Tillman |
Awards and Nominations
Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Stranger Things | Won |
2018 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | |
2020 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated |
Gallery
Trivia
- His full name is Joseph David Keery.
- He has 4 sisters.
- His sister insisted he become an actor.
- Besides acting, Keery is also a musician.
- He's not related to Ben Schwartz.
- He initially auditioned for the role of Jonathan, but later sent in a tape for his character Steve.
- He filled the role of Ferris Bueller from Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) in a Domino's Pizza commercial.