Joe Keery
Keery at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con
Born
Joseph David Keery

(1992-04-24) April 24, 1992 (age 31)
Newburyport, Massachusetts, U.S.
EducationDePaul University (BFA)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • musician
Years active2015–present
Known forStranger Things
Free Guy
Musical career
Also known asDjo, Cool Cool Cool
OriginChicago
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • keyboards
  • drums
Formerly ofPost Animal
Websitedjomusic.com

Joseph David Keery (born April 24, 1992) is an American actor and musician.[1] He became known for playing Steve Harrington in the science fiction series Stranger Things (2016–present), and has since starred in the comedy film Free Guy (2021) and in the fifth season of the crime drama series Fargo (2023–2024).

He releases music under the stage name Djo, and was a member of the psychedelic rock band Post Animal.

Early life

Keery was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, and is the second of five children.[2] He attended River Valley Charter School, a local Montessori elementary and middle school, and Newburyport High School.[3] When he was young, he participated in Theater in the Open, a performing arts camp at Maudslay State Park, but ultimately began acting in high school at his older sister's insistence.[4][5]

Keery went on to study at The Theatre School at DePaul University and graduated in 2014 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting.[6][7]

Career

Acting

Before his breakout role in Stranger Things, Keery appeared in KFC, Domino's, and Amiibo commercials,[8] and had roles in Empire and Chicago Fire.[6][9] His first appearance in a full-length film was in Stephen Cone's indie, Henry Gamble's Birthday Party.[6]

Keery's breakthrough role was as Steve in the Netflix sci-fi series Stranger Things. He was cast in late 2015; having initially auditioned for the role of Jonathan, he later sent in a tape for his character, Steve.[10] The show premiered in 2016 to critical acclaim. He was promoted from recurring cast to a series regular for the second season of Stranger Things.[11] The third and fourth seasons were released in 2019 and 2022, respectively.

Since beginning Stranger Things, Keery has also acted in a few independent movies, including starring in the 2020 satire film, Spree. He also played the role of Walter "Keys" McKey,[12] a game developer, in the 2021 action comedy film Free Guy, which went on to become a major box-office hit.[13] In May 2022, he was cast opposite Liam Neeson in the sci-fi action film Cold Storage.[14] In August 2022, he was cast as Gator Tillman in the fifth season of Fargo.[15]

Music

Aside from acting, Keery is also a musician. In his early twenties, he released music under the name "Cool Cool Cool."[16] Keery was a guitarist and drummer for Chicago-based garage and psych-rock band Post Animal.[17] Their debut album was released in October 2015.[18] The band's second album, When I Think Of You In A Castle, was released in April 2018 and saw Keery performing guitar and vocals. As of 2019, Keery was no longer a touring member of the band, and he later parted ways due to acting commitments.[19][20]

On July 19, 2019, Keery self-released the single "Roddy" as a solo artist under the moniker Djo.[21] Keery released a second single on August 9, 2019, titled "Chateau (Feel Alright)" under the same moniker.[22] On September 13, 2019, Keery released his debut album as Djo, Twenty Twenty.[23] In a positive review of the album, NME called Keery "a musician of very high calibre who... dabbles in the kind of inventive, warped psychedelia that gently twists your melon and constantly shapeshifts around you," and compared his music to that of Tame Impala and Ariel Pink.[24]

On September 9, 2020, he released a new single, "Keep Your Head Up".[25] In 2022, he took part in a summer music festival tour. His sophomore album Decide was announced in June 2022, along with the release of its first single "Change".[26][27] The album was released on September 16, 2022, and received positive reviews.[28]

Personal life

Keery dated actress Maika Monroe from 2017 to 2023.[29]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2015 Henry Gamble's Birthday Party Gabe
2016 The Charnel House Scott
2017 Molly's Game Trust Fund Cole
2018 After Everything Chris
Slice Jackson
2019 How to Be Alone Jack / The Gimp Short film
2020 Spree Kurt Kunkle
2021 Free Guy Walter "Keys" McKeys [30]
2023 Finalmente l'alba Sean Lockwood [31]
2024 Marmalade Baron
TBA Cold Storage Travis Meacham [32]

Television

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2015 Sirens Scenester Episode: "Screw the One Percent"
Chicago Fire Emmett 2 episodes
Empire Tony Trichter III Episode: "Who I Am"
2016–present Stranger Things Steve Harrington Recurring role (season 1)
Main role (season 2–present)
2019–2021 No Activity Officer Ed Reinhardt Recurring role (season 3–4)
2020 Death to 2020 Duke Goolies Television special
2021 Death to 2021
2023 Fargo Gator Tillman Main role (season 5)[15]

Discography

Post Animal

Studio album

Extended plays

As solo artist

Studio albums

Singles

Title Year Album
"Roddy" 2019 Twenty Twenty
"Chateau (Feel Alright)"
"Mortal Projections"
"Keep Your Head Up" 2020 Non-album single
"Change" 2022 DECIDE
"Gloom"
"Figure You Out"
"Half Life"

Accolades

Year Award Category Nominated work Result Ref.
2017 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Stranger Things Won [33]
2018 Nominated [34]
2020 Nominated

References

  1. ^ "Celebrity Birthdays for the Week of April 23–29". The Associated Press. April 24, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  2. ^ Sullivan, Jim (26 August 2016). "NHS alum Keery finds fame in Netflix's 'Stranger Things'". The Daily News of Newburyport. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  3. ^ "'Stranger Things' star Joe Keery spotted in New Hampshire". Yahoo News. 2023-08-08. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  4. ^ Slane, Kevin. "Newburyport's Joe Keery on 'Stranger Things' season 3 and his local roots". www.boston.com. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  5. ^ "Joe Keery Didn't Think He Would Make It Past Stranger Things Season 1". Yahoo Finance. 2022-07-19. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  6. ^ a b c Greene, Morgan (17 August 2016). "'Stranger Things' pulls Ravenswood actor into its orbit". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  7. ^ "Joe Keery Stars in hit Netflix series Stranger Things | Theatre School News". blogs.depaul.edu. Retrieved 2019-08-07.
  8. ^ Daly, Kelly (28 July 2016). "Who To Watch: Joe Keery". Chicago Splash. Retrieved 9 July 2017.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ Nintendo (2014-10-23), Super Smash Bros. - Gameplay & Quest for the amiibo!, archived from the original on 2021-11-11, retrieved 9 November 2017
  10. ^ Jung, E. Alex. "Stranger Things' Joe Keery Agrees That Steve's Jeans Were Very Tight". Vulture. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  11. ^ Bradley, Laura (13 December 2016). "What Millie Bobby Brown Really Wants from Stranger Things Season 2". Vanity Fair. Condé Nast. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  12. ^ Jha, Aditya Mani (2021-10-29). "Ready, set, 'gamified'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-11-09.
  13. ^ "Joe Keery: Stranger Guy". FLOOD. Retrieved 2021-11-09.
  14. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (2022-05-11). "Hot Cannes Package: Liam Neeson, Joe Keery Star In Jonny Campbell-Helmed Studiocanal Sci-Fi Virus Tale 'Cold Storage;' David Koepp Adapted His Novel". Deadline. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  15. ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (August 8, 2022). "'Fargo': Joe Keery, Lamorne Morris & Richa Moorjani Join Season 5 Of FX Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
  16. ^ "I'm Not Smart, by Cool Cool Cool". Cool Cool Cool. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  17. ^ Hillyer, Alec (14 August 2016). "Review: Post Animal's Post Animal Perform the Most Curious Water Activities". Medium. A Medium Corporation. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  18. ^ Cooper, Leonie (5 August 2016). "Listen To Steve From Stranger Things' Tame Impala Style Psych Band". NME. Time Inc. UK. Retrieved 9 July 2017.[permanent dead link]
  19. ^ "When I Think Of You In A Castle". www.polyvinylrecords.com. Retrieved 2019-02-19.
  20. ^ "Joe Keery on 'Stranger Things' season four: "The end is in sight for these guys"". NME. 2020-08-20. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  21. ^ Terry, Josh; Horn, Leslie (2019-07-23). "'Stranger Things' Actor Joe Keery's New Song Is Even Better Than His Hair". Vice. Retrieved 2019-08-06.
  22. ^ Roffman, Michael (2019-08-09). "Stranger Things' Joe Keery shares dreamy new song "Chateau (Feel Alright)": Stream". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2019-08-19.
  23. ^ Daly, Rhian (13 September 2019). "Djo - 'Twenty Twenty' Review". NME. Retrieved 2019-09-15.
  24. ^ Daly, Rhian (2019-09-13). "Djo – 'Twenty Twenty' review". NME. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  25. ^ Kaye, Ben (9 September 2020). "Djo (aka Joe Keery) Unveils New Song "Keep Your Head Up": Stream". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  26. ^ Anderson, Carys (2022-06-22). "Djo (Stranger Things' Joe Keery) announces new album Decide, shares "Change": Stream". Consequence. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
  27. ^ a b Arnone, Joey. "Djo (Joe Keery from "Stranger Things") Announces New Album, Shares New Song "Change"". www.undertheradarmag.com. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  28. ^ "Decide by Djo". Metacritic. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  29. ^ "Are 'Stranger Things' Actor Joe Keery and Maika Monroe Still Together? Relationship Details, Update". J-14. 24 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-12-30.
  30. ^ "'Free Guy': Why Millie and Keys Are the Heart of the Movie". collider.com. 15 March 2022.
  31. ^ Vivarelli, Nick (August 29, 2022). "Saverio Costanzo Talks 'Finalmente L'alba' in Which Lily James Plays a 1950s Hollywood Star at Cinecittà – First Look Image (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  32. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (2022-05-11). "Hot Cannes Package: Liam Neeson, Joe Keery Star In Jonny Campbell-Helmed Studiocanal Sci-Fi Virus Tale 'Cold Storage;' David Koepp Adapted His Novel". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  33. ^ "Screen Actors Guild Awards 2017: Complete Winners List". ABC News. January 30, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  34. ^ "2018 SAG Award Nominations: See the Full List". Vanity Fair. 13 December 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2018.

External links

Authority control databases
Categories