When you think of Joe Keery, it's likely that your mind will going to Stranger Things, one of the best shows on Netflix to date. The 33-year-old actor has been playing everyone’s favorite demogorgon-slaying-babysitter, Steve Harrington, since he was in his early 20s. The role launched his acting career, and it’s safe to say this fan-favorite ‘80s teen with killer hair will be the crown jewel of Keery's resume for years to come. How does Keery feel about that, though? Well, he just shared a fantastic take.
When a young actor spends 10 years of their life playing a popular role, it’s sometimes hard to escape that character afterwards. There’s a fear of being pigeon-holed into a specific archetype when it comes to roles. With Stranger Things 5 wrapped and set to premiere on Netflix’s 2025 release schedule, the Zach Sang Show asked Joe Keery how he was feeling about fans possibly only recognizing him as Steve Harrington for the foreseeable future, and it sounds like he's not all that bothered by the possibility:
I mean, what a gift it's been to do it. And there's like a part of me, obviously, that is like 'No, I'm more than just that.' But I don't know, I'm kind of OK with that. If that's all, I mean, what an insane ride that has been. But I guess now it puts me in this place of privilege to be able to just, like, chase the things I'm really interested in doing.
The Marmalade actor is referring to his exploding music career, which he partakes in under the stage name Djo. By the time one of his songs went viral on TikTok, the indie artist had already released two studio albums. It was the viral success of “End of Beginning” that finally had people making the connection between the Stranger Things actor and his music. Between the release of his new album, The Crux, and the upcoming final season of ST, the Massachusetts native’s career is arguably more well known than ever before.
I think the stage alias definitely helps separate Keery’s musical craft from Steve Harrington, not that he’s trying to hide one from the other. I think his take on his Stranger Things fame is very glass-half full and grateful. For some, like his co-star, Millie Bobby Brown, the attention can be a burden at times. His mindset to see it as a privilege is the real gift. While Keery says he's looking forward into his next career move, he will never let go of his time on the Netflix series:
I’m interested in doing other things, not just music. I’m interested in doing other roles that are interesting. But a thing like [Stranger Things] that’s like a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Yeah, what a fun and crazy ride.
A crazy ride is putting it lightly. When Stranger Things premiered back in 2016, it was one of the first Netflix original series to really penetrate the pop culture zeitgeist. I'm not sure anyone could have imagined the pop cultural phenomenon it would become, especially not Keery.
According to series creators Duffer Brothers, Steve was one of the characters they had originally planned to kill off early on in Season 1, but they saw potential in Joe Keery’s portrayal and ran with it. The Free Guy actor told Sang he initially only signed on to four days of work on the Stranger Things set. Nearly a decade later, he experienced an emotional final day of filming.
I can’t say I blame them for keeping Joe Keery around as, ultimately, some of Steve’s best moments have been the highlights of the iconic sci-fi series. I only hope the fan theories about Steve's potential death in the upcoming season are proven wrong. I love Keery's character, but what makes me smile even more is that the actor himself doesn't plan to shy away from attention related to the role as time goes on.
You can check out Keery’s charismatic portrayal of Steve by streaming the first four seasons of Stranger Things now using a Netflix subscription.
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