# Joey King

Joey Lynn King (born July 30, 1999) is an American actress. She starred as Ramona Quimby in the comedy film Ramona and Beezus (2010) and gained wider recognition for her lead role as a late-blooming teenager in The Kissing Booth film series (2018–2021). King received critical acclaim for playing Gypsy-Rose Blanchard in the crime drama series The Act (2019), for which she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award.
King has also appeared in the films Battle: Los Angeles (2011), Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), The Conjuring (2013), White House Down (2013), Independence Day: Resurgence (2016), and Going in Style (2017), as well as in the FX black comedy series Fargo (2014–2015). She has since taken on lead roles in the action films Bullet Train (2022) and The Princess (2022), romantic comedy A Family Affair (2024), and performed a voice role in Despicable Me 4 (2024).

## Early life

King was born in Los Angeles to Terry and Jamie King on July 30, 1999. She has two older sisters, one of whom is actress Hunter King. Her mother is of Jewish descent. King has said, "I'm Jewish, but I'm not really, really religious."
As a child, she sang a cappella for a talent show at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center and performed with the Stage Door Children's Theatre in Agoura. King attended Phoenix Ranch School in Simi Valley. King began acting professionally at the age of four in a commercial for Life Cereal. She has also been in commercials for AT&T, Kay Jewelers, and Eggo.

## Career
### 2006–2016: Beginnings and child acting

King voiced the yellow fur ball Katie in the animated feature Horton Hears a Who! (2008). She also appeared in Quarantine (2008). In 2010, she guest-starred in the series Ghost Whisperer. She was also featured in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody as Emily Mason in two episodes. Other television appearances include Jericho, Entourage, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Medium and Life in Pieces.
King's first lead role was Ramona Quimby in the 2010 film Ramona and Beezus, an adaptation of the Beverly Cleary book series. She also released a single for the movie called "Ramona Blue." Her role in the film won her a Young Artist Award. King was featured in Battle: Los Angeles, where she played a girl named Kirsten. Also in 2011, she co-starred in Crazy, Stupid, Love. She also appeared in Taylor Swift's "Mean" music video as a young student at the school cafeteria rejected by her peers.
King had a role in Christopher Nolan's third Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises (2012), as a young Talia al Ghul. She also filmed the short-lived comedy series Bent, had guest appearances in New Girl and was on the final episode of The Haunting Hour: The Series, "Goodwill Towards Men". In 2013, King appeared in Oz the Great and Powerful, Family Weekend, White House Down, and The Conjuring. In 2014, she appeared in Wish I Was Here, as well as in Fargo as Greta Grimly, daughter of police officer Gus Grimly. In 2016, King was cast in the coming-of-age drama film The Possibility of Fireflies. She played the lead character Clare in the 2017 horror-thriller film Wish Upon. She also had a role in supernatural horror film Slender Man, which was released in 2018.

### 2017–present: The Kissing Booth and The Act

In 2018, she starred as Elle Evans in Netflix's teen romantic comedy The Kissing Booth. She reprised the role in the sequel The Kissing Booth 2, released in 2020, and in The Kissing Booth 3, which was released on August 11, 2021. In 2019, she starred in the true crime anthology television series The Act on Hulu. King was cast as Gypsy Rose Blanchard, a role which required King to shave her head for the third time in her career. Her performance in The Act earned her nominations for Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG and Critics' Choice awards. She also appeared on the fourth season of CBS comedy Life in Pieces as Morgan.
King is represented by talent agent Dan Spilo. In August 2020, she signed a deal with Hulu to produce television content for its service. In July 2021, her All The King's Horses production company struck a deal with Netflix. She appeared as Halina Kurc in the Hulu Original Series We Were the Lucky Ones. In 2024, King starred in Netflix's film A Family Affair.

## Personal life

King began a relationship with producer and director Steven Piet in 2019 after they met on the set of The Act. They became engaged in February 2022 and married on September 2, 2023, in Mallorca, Spain.
King signed the "No Hostage Left Behind" letter, an open letter asking US President Joe Biden to ensure the release of hostages kidnapped by Hamas during the October 7 attacks.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2008 | Horton Hears a Who! | Katie (voice) | |
| 2008 | Quarantine | Briana | |
| 2010 | Ramona and Beezus | Ramona Quimby | |
| 2011 | Battle: Los Angeles | Kirsten | |
| 2011 | Crazy, Stupid, Love | Molly Weaver | |
| 2012 | The Dark Knight Rises | Young Talia al Ghul | Cameo |
| 2013 | The Conjuring | Christine Perron | |
| 2013 | Family Weekend | Lucinda Smith-Dungy | |
| 2013 | Oz the Great and Powerful | China Girl / Girl in wheelchair | |
| 2013 | White House Down | Emily Cale | |
| 2014 | The Boxcar Children | Jessie Alden (voice) | |
| 2014 | The Sound and the Fury | Miss Quentin | |
| 2014 | Wish I Was Here | Grace Bloom | |
| 2015 | Borealis | Aurora | |
| 2015 | Stonewall | Phoebe Winters | |
| 2016 | Independence Day: Resurgence | Sam Blackwell | |
| 2017 | Going in Style | Brooklyn Harding | |
| 2017 | Smartass | Freddie | |
| 2017 | Wish Upon | Clare Shannon | |
| 2018 | The Boxcar Children: Surprise Island | Jessie Alden (voice) | |
| 2018 | The Kissing Booth | Elle Evans | |
| 2018 | The Lie | Kayla Logan | |
| 2018 | Radium Girls | Bessie Cavallo | |
| 2018 | Summer '03 | Jamie Winkle | |
| 2018 | Slender Man | Wren | |
| 2019 | Zeroville | Zazi | |
| 2020 | The Kissing Booth 2 | Elle Evans | Also executive producer |
| 2021 | The Kissing Booth 3 | Elle Evans | Also executive producer |
| 2022 | The In Between | Tessa | Also producer |
| 2022 | The Princess | The Princess | Also executive producer |
| 2022 | Bullet Train | Malen'kiy Prints / The Prince | |
| 2024 | Despicable Me 4 | Poppy Prescott (voice) | |
| 2024 | Camp | Sarah | Also co-producer |
| 2024 | A Family Affair | Zara Ford | |
| 2024 | Uglies | Tally Youngblood | Also executive producer |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Malcolm in the Middle | Girl at party | Episode: "Mono" |
| 2006 | The Suite Life of Zack & Cody | Emily Mason | Episodes: "Day Care", "Books and Birdhouses" |
| 2006–2007 | Jericho | Sally | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Avenging Angel | Amelia | Television film |
| 2007 | Backyards & Bullets | Junie Garrison | Television film |
| 2007 | Entourage | Chuck Liddell's daughter | Episode: "Gotcha!" |
| 2007–2008 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Little Girl / Nora Rowe | Episodes: "Living Doll", "Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda" |
| 2008 | Medium | Kelly Mackenzie (age 8) | Episode "Drowned World" |
| 2009 | Anatomy of Hope | Lucy Morgan | Television film |
| 2010 | Elevator Girl | Paige | Television film |
| 2010 | Ghost Whisperer | Cassidy | Episodes: "Old Sins Cast Long Shadows", "The Children's Parade" |
| 2011 | Bent | Charlie Meyers | Main role |
| 2011 | Survivor: South Pacific | Herself | Episode: "Reunion" |
| 2012 | New Girl | Brianna | Episode: "Bully" |
| 2013–2014 | The Haunting Hour: The Series | Carla / Missy Jordan | Episodes: "Seance", "Goodwill Toward Men" |
| 2014 | American Dad! | N/A (voice) | Episode: "Familyland" |
| 2014 | Outlaw Prophet: Warren Jeffs | Elissa Wall | Television film |
| 2014–2015 | Fargo | Greta Grimly | Recurring role (season 1); special guest role (season 2) |
| 2016 | The Flash | Frankie Kane / Magenta | Episode: "Magenta" |
| 2016 | Robot Chicken | Polly Pocket / Draculaura (voices) | Episode: "Yogurt in a Bag" |
| 2016 | Tween Fest | Maddisyn Crawford | Main role |
| 2019 | The Act | Gypsy-Rose Blanchard | Main role |
| 2019 | Life in Pieces | Morgan | 3 episodes |
| 2020 | Creepshow | Blake (voice) | Episode: "A Creepshow Animated Special" |
| 2020 | Home Movie: The Princess Bride | Grandson | Episode: "Chapter Eight: Ultimate Suffering" |
| 2020 | Group Chat | Herself | Episode: "Would You Rather Kiss" |
| 2020 | The Simpsons | Addy (voice) | Episode: "The Hateful Eight-Year-Olds" |
| 2021 | Calls | Skylar (voice) | Episode: "Mom" |
| 2021 | Nailed It | Herself | Episode: "Travel Dos and Donuts" |
| 2022–present | Hamster & Gretel | Fred Grant (voice) | Main cast |
| 2024 | We Were the Lucky Ones | Halina Kurc | |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2018 | Madden NFL 19: Longshot | Loretta Cruise |

### Music videos

| Year | Song | Artist |
| 2010 | "Ramona Blue" | Joey King featuring Kelli King |
| 2011 | "Mean" | Taylor Swift |
| 2018 | "Sue Me" | Sabrina Carpenter |
| 2019 | "Tongue Tied" | Marshmello, Yungblud, and Blackbear |
| 2023 | "I Can See You" | Taylor Swift |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2009 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Series – Guest Starring Young Actress | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Nominated |
| 2009 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Voice-Over Role – Young Actress | Horton Hears a Who! | Nominated |
| 2010 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) – Supporting Young Actress | Anatomy of Hope | Nominated |
| 2010 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Voice-Over Role – Young Actor/Actress | Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | Nominated |
| 2011 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actress Ten and Under | Ramona and Beezus | Won |
| 2011 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Series – Guest Starring Young Actress Ten and Under | Ghost Whisperer | Nominated |
| 2013 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Feature Film – Supporting Young Actress | The Dark Knight Rises | Nominated |
| 2014 | Gotham Independent Film Awards | Breakthrough Actor | Wish I Was Here | Nominated |
| 2019 | Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Movie Actress | The Kissing Booth | Won |
| 2019 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | The Act | Nominated |
| 2019 | Satellite Awards | Best Actress in a Miniseries or Television Film | The Act | Nominated |
| 2020 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television | The Act | Nominated |
| 2020 | Critics' Choice Television Awards | Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television | The Act | Nominated |
| 2020 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie | The Act | Nominated |
| 2020 | People's Choice Awards | Comedy Movie Star of 2020 | The Kissing Booth 2 | Won |
| 2022 | People's Choice Awards | Female Movie Star of 2022 | Bullet Train | Nominated |
| 2022 | People's Choice Awards | Action Movie Star of 2022 | Bullet Train | Nominated |
| 2023 | Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Actress in an Action Movie | Bullet Train | Nominated |
| 2023 | Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Actress in an Action Movie | The Princess | Nominated |
| 2023 | Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Villain in a Movie | Bullet Train | Nominated |
| 2024 | Astra TV Awards | Best Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie | We Were The Lucky Ones | Nominated |
At the 2015 Vancouver International Film Festival, the Canadian Images features jury made an honourable mention recognizing King as an Emerging Actress for her performance in Borealis.