Joey King became a household name with the film, 'The Kissing Booth'. Here's everything you need to know about the 24-year-old actress.
Joey Lynn King is an American actress who gained fame for playing ‘Elle Evans’ in the widely popular teenage romantic comedy, The Kissing Booth. Her performance in the movie established her as one of Hollywood's brightest and most notable stars. Joey ventured into Hollywood at a very young age and has acted in some of the most well-known movies and series of all time.
As per reports, the popular actress is all set to embark on a new life journey with director, Steven Piet in 2023. As the actress turned 24 on July 30, 2023, let’s have a look at her early life, career, relationships and many more things.
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Joey King was born in Los Angeles, California, on July 30, 1999. She was born to Jewish parents, Terry King and Jamie King. Joey’s father, Terry King, was an arm-wrestling champion and also served as a consultant to American actor, Sylvester Stallone. Joey is the youngest among her siblings, Hunter King and Kelli King, both of whom are professional actors.
Joey did her schooling at Phoenix Ranch School in Simi Valley. She began her career at a very young age. The actress has said that her grandmother inspired her to step into the entertainment world. As Joey’s love for the profession grew, she soon began auditioning for movie roles in 2006.
When most kids learn to walk or talk at the age of four, Joey King made her debut on television screens. She appeared in a national television advertisement for Quaker Oats’ Life Cereal. Soon after, she began working as a child model. She went on to appear in several national and regional advertisements over the years before bagging her first role in a movie in 2006.
Joey King first starred in the American sitcom, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody in 2006. Even though she was only in two episodes, still the Disney series gave Joey a stage to showcase her immense acting talent. After this, she made an uncredited appearance in the 2007 movie, Reign Over Me.
Her brief yet impactful performances led her to bag a major role in the 2008 horror movie, Quarantine. Joey King lent her voice as ‘Katie’ in the animated movie, Horton Hears a Who! in 2008. She also gave her voice as ‘Beaver Girl’ to the 2009 animated film, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.
Joey King went on to play brief roles in television series like Anatomy of Hope, Entourage, Jericho, and Malcolm in the Middle while she was waiting for that one breakthrough role. As destiny would have it, she finally received an offer to play one of the protagonists in the comedy film, Ramona and Beezus in 2010. Joey got the role of ‘Ramona Quimby’ starring opposite the American actor-singer, Selena Gomez’s character ‘Beezus Quimby’. Along with her role in the movie, Joey sang Ramona Blue for the movie's original soundtrack.
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After her first success, Joey starred in other high-profile films, including the 2011 rom-com, Crazy, Stupid, Love starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. She also made a brief appearance in the Christopher Nolan-directed film, The Dark Knight Rises as ‘Talia al Ghul’ in 2012. The Dark Knight Trilogy's final instalment, The Dark Knight Rises, was a major commercial and critical success.
She made an appearance in the fantasy adventure movie, Oz The Great and Powerful, in 2013. Joey played 'China Girl,' primarily a vocal role in the film. She bagged a very significant role in the same year. She starred as ‘Christine’ in the horror movie, The Conjuring. Subsequently, she has starred in several popular films, including Stonewall, Borealis, Independence Day: Resurgence, Going in Style, Wish Upon, and Smartass. She was cast as ‘Greta Grimly’ in the popular criminal drama series, Fargo in 2014.
Joey King’s ‘Elle Evans’ became a household name in 2018. The Netflix original movie, The Kissing Booth (TKB), became an instant fan favourite, and people from all over the world went gaga over the budding romance between ‘Elle Evans’ and the Australian actor, Jacob Elordi’s ‘Noah Flynn’. According to the streaming giant’s CEO, Ted Sarandos, TKB became one of the most-watched movies across the world. Joey King gained international recognition, all thanks to TKB.
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The on-screen chemistry between Joey King and Jacob Elordi sparked romance between the duo in real life. Joey and Jacob finally made their relationship public on Instagram. However, it did not last long, and the couple got over each other in November 2018. After which, Joey King was once again associated with one of the co-stars of The Kissing Booth franchise in 2020. This time it was Taylor Zakhar Perez. After a few months, Taylor clarified the rumours and said they were good friends.
In an interview on The Howard Stern Show in August 2020, Joey King opened up about being in a relationship with her co-actor, Jacob Elordi. She said that she could not ever date another actor now. She said:
“I think it’s a good thing we dated in the first place. I learned the most I’ve ever learned in my life from him. I think that it’s awesome to date someone in your field, who gets it, but doing the same exact thing as somebody is tough. It’s really tough.”
In September 2019, Joey King and director, Steven Piet were spotted packing on a PDA while watching Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The couple kept their relationship under wraps initially but then began talking about their romance on their respective social media. After three years of dating, she got engaged to him in February 2022.
While filming Hulu's 2019 drama series, The Act, Joey King met her Steven Piet, on the set. Joey took to her Instagram to share her heartfelt thoughts on her engagement with Steven on February 2, 2022. She penned:
“I never knew happiness could be so powerful that it can take the air from your lungs, overwhelming every part of you that you can’t help but feel your eyes well from the undeniable joy. I never knew that a person's presence and heart could feel like a real home. I never knew love could be so unquestionably beautiful. I never knew until you. The date was 2/2/22 when you asked me to marry you and made me the luckiest lady alive. I love you more than an Instagram caption could ever do justice. Hanging out with you forever sounds like a real dream, so let’s do it.”
The director, Steven Piet was not left behind and joined Joey King in commemorating their engagement on social media. In the post, he mentioned that he asked his best friend to spend the rest of their lives together. He penned:
“The weather was less than perfect. Cold. Windy. Perfectly imperfect to ask my best friend to spend a lifetime together. A lifetime of incredibly safe and vulnerable conversations. Holding hands on silent cab rides home, exhausted from great food and red wine. And oh, the laughter. The uncontrollable laughter. You've unlocked a dimension of love in me that I never knew existed.”
The Kissing Booth actress posted a carousel of pictures with her fiance and a close-up image of her stunning oval-shaped engagement ring. Us Weekly reported that the Brooklyn-based jewellery brand, Mociun made Joey's ring. The pair have not disclosed the exact cost of the ring. Still, jewellery designer, Mark Broumand revealed to Seventeen that given the various aspects of the sophisticated design, it would cost around USD 120,000.
Let’s be honest here that none of the celebrities in the entertainment industry is devoid of any controversies or has not been a part of some rumours. Knowingly or unknowingly, some or the other actions or statements by celebrities make them part of controversies. Joey King is no exception to this phenomenon either.
In August 2020, after Jacob Elordi admitted to Variety that he hadn't seen The Kissing Booth 2. He said, 'I haven't seen it. More than I have seen, you have.' Joey King tweeted and then deleted a tweet. In the since-deleted post, Joey claimed he was ‘capping’. She later clarified on The Howard Stern Show that she had deleted her contentious tweet due to its questionable language and not because of any disagreement with Jacob on the film.
There were rumours that Joey King hooked up with her Bullet Train co-actor, Aaron Taylor-Johnson while they were on a press tour to Paris in July 2022. However, there are no photos or videos behind these allegations, and moreover, Joey King got engaged to Steven Piet earlier in 2022. At the same time, Aaron Talor-Johnson has been married to British film director, Sam Taylor-Johnson since 2012.
Before her wedding, Joey King is seen enjoying some quality time with her gal pals in Napa Valley, California. She is frequently posting photos on social media from her celebrations. Joey King arranged a ‘Steve-themed’ party where her friends can be seen dressed up as popular Steves in the world while she chose to dress up like her groom, Steven Piet.
We send Joey King our best regards on her upcoming wedding with Steven Piet.
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