Joe Keery Didn’t Think Steve Would Return To ‘Stranger Things’ After First Season

It’s hard to imagine “Stranger Things” without fan-favorite Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington, however actor Joe Keery didn’t have much hope for his character beyond season one of the hit show.

The 30-year-old actor reflected on the moment he learned he’d landed the role with Jimmy Fallon in an appearance on “The Tonight Show” this week.

Keery shared that he waited three months after his initial audition before learning that the Duffer brothers, creators and executive producers of “Stranger Things”, wanted him to read for Steve – or in Keery’s own words, “the jerky boyfriend”.

Like many aspiring actors, Keery had been working as a waiter before landing his big break. He told Fallon that he was on shift at the restaurant when he got the call, detailing the silent celebration with a coworker in the back and thinking how great it was that he wouldn’t have to work in a restaurant anymore.

Despite his excitement, Keery wasn’t sure how long Steve would last on the show. He explained how the Duffer brothers were writing episodes in real time, so characters’ fates were up in the air even to the actors themselves.

“I read one, maybe, episode of the show – two episodes,” Keery revealed. “And it was kind of like a – we read three episodes, and then they had two more. It was really, they were building it out as we were going. It was day to day.”

Well, all we can say is a big” thank you” to the Duffer brothers for keeping Keery around, because “Stranger Things” wouldn’t be the same without Steve Harrington and his wonderful head of hair.

Access Hollywood spoke to the “Stranger Things” star in May where he opened up about the emotion surrounding the last table read for their upcoming fifth and final season. “I’ll shed a tear or two,” he said. Adding that while moment would likely “super sad” and “bittersweet,” it’d also be “beginning of something new for everybody.”

— Hayley Santaflorentina

‘Stranger Things’ Star Joe Keery

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