All For Show

Yet Another Temper Tantrum

Andrew nervously messed with his tie as the cameraman started counting down. He couldn't stand still so he began pacing back and forth in Joe's dressing room.

"Just don't be an ass," he mumbled as Seth Meyers introduced Joe. "Please, don't be an ass."

Throughout the entire interview, Joe acted exactly how Andrew feared he would act; obnoxious. He answered questions passively, smugly, and aggressively. He threw in random brags about himself. And he was blatantly disrespectful. This is why not many people want an interview with Joe Keery. The only reason he got any was because of Stranger Things.

Watching him in an interview or watching him work with others is like watching a toddler's temper tantrum. Any little thing could and would set him off. You look at him funny and he's ready to fight. You ask him a serious question and he gives a sarcastic answer. You ask about something he's working on, he assumes you haven't heard of it.

In other words, he is a PR nightmare.

He wasn't always like this. When Andrew first met Joe, he wasn't a problem. Joe had dreams and did everything he could to reach them. Andrew swore to help him reach those dreams.

When Joe finally reached them, he found that it didn't matter how good of an actor he was. What matters is how many headlines you make. The bigger the incident, the longer the headlines lasted.

Andrew wasn't sure when Joe changed. When he first met Joe, he seemed like a great kid. Then he got a role where he was an asshole and he ran with it. Even though Steve Harrington has become a teenage mom, Joe Keery is still an ass.

Andrew wasn't sure what made Joe change. He was a starry-eyed guy who wanted to act. Now, he was an angry-eyed guy who just wanted to be famous. Andrew knew the difference between wanting to act and wanting to be famous. Joe didn't. Or if he did, he didn't care.

"And cut!"

Andrew let out a sigh of relief as the cameras shut off. The interview wasn't perfect or even nice, but it also wasn't his worst. He was snappy and sarcastic. At least he wasn't as vulgar or profane as usual.

Joe ripped off his mic and left without saying goodbye to the host. Andrew took a shaky breath before sitting down and waiting for Joe. It didn't take long.

"What?" Joe asked the second he walked into his dressing room and saw Andrew glaring at him with disappointment in his eyes.

"You don't see anything wrong with that interview?"

"Should I?" Joe scoffed as he took off his suit coat and instantly went to the fridge to grab a beer.

"Joe," Andrew groaned. "Do you hear the things you say?"

"Duh," Joe laughed.

"You sure?" Andrew scoffed. "Because it seems like you don't get it."

"Don't get what?" Joe groaned.

"How damning this is for your career!" Andrew yelled, jumping up. He didn't care about controlling his anger. "People refuse to work with you, Joe. And it's pretty clear why. I'm your publicist. My job is to try and control what people say about you. It's pretty damn hard to do that when you say every damn thing that comes to your mind!"

"It's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal?" Andrew laughed. "You know that movie you were looking forward to? The Amazon movie with Ryan Reynolds?"

"What about it?" Joe sighed.

"Shawn called me yesterday," Andrew said, not bothering to hide his smirk. "They're going with someone else."

"I'm fired?!" Joe said through his teeth.

"Nope," Andrew laughed. "They had never officially hired you, so you're not technically being fired."

"Whatever," Joe scoffed. He rolled his eyes, but Andrew saw right through his client. Joe was upset but he was trying to act like he didn't care.

Andrew sighed before sitting back down. He ran his fingers through his hair and looked back up at his client.

"Listen to me, kid," Andrew sighed, "I don't know what's going on with you, but I'm trying to help you."

"No, you're not," Joe scoffed. "You're worried about your job."

"Joe," Andrew said sternly. "I worry about you, kid. Whether you believe me or not, I do. If something's going on, talk to me."

"Nothing's going on," Joe mumbled. He glanced at the beer in his hand and put it down. He crossed his arms over his chest and scoffed.

"Can I go home now?"

"Yeah," Andrew sighed. "Let's get out of here."