Joey King has spent almost her entire life learning how Hollywood works. Born in Los Angeles, she began appearing in commercials when she was only four years old, gaining experience in front of cameras long before most children think about careers. Those early sets taught her how to follow direction, work with scripts and adapt quickly to different characters. She eventually moved from advertising into television and film, growing up professionally in front of audiences. Today, King has expanded beyond acting into producing and voice performance while continuing to take on challenging roles.
King accumulated numerous commercial credits during childhood before making the transition into television. Early appearances helped prepare her for larger film opportunities, and her breakthrough as a young performer came with Ramona and Beezus in 2010, where she starred as Ramona Quimby alongside Selena Gomez. The family comedy established King as a recognizable young lead and opened the door to a wider variety of projects.
Her childhood career also produced some unusual memories. During an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno around her 11th birthday, King received a miniature pig, which she named J.J. Yet as she grew older, her work increasingly demonstrated a willingness to move beyond the expectations often attached to former child stars.
King has repeatedly transformed herself for roles, including shaving her head on several occasions. She did so while working on The Dark Knight Rises and Wish I Was Here, and again for the true crime drama The Act. In the latter, King portrayed Gypsy Rose Blanchard, delivering one of the most demanding performances of her career. The role earned her nominations at the Emmy Awards, Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Her career has also included lighter mainstream entertainment. The Kissing Booth films introduced her to a huge international audience, while projects such as Bullet Train allowed her to move into action comedy. In 2024, she joined the animated world of Despicable Me 4, voicing aspiring supervillain Poppy Prescott and adding another form of performance to her growing résumé.
King has increasingly become involved behind the camera as well. Producing has given her greater participation in the development of projects and marked an important transition from someone who grew up working on sets to someone helping shape what happens before filming begins.
Acting also runs in her family. Her older sister Hunter King has built her own television career, including an Emmy winning run on The Young and the Restless. Their shared profession has given the sisters an unusual understanding of the pressures and opportunities that accompany life in entertainment.
