Joseph Quinn is a classically trained actor — but apparently not great at first impressions.
The Stranger Things star sat down with Josh Horowitz for an interview on Monday’s episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast and, when asked about the cringiest celebrity encounter he’s had since finding fame, didn’t have to think too long to remember.
“I met Taylor Swift once and I said, ‘You’re Taylor Swift,’” Joseph answered. “And she was very funny. She said something nice about the show and I said, ‘Oh thanks! You’re Taylor Swift!’.
“I meant it as a compliment … I remember thinking, ‘That was fucking stupid.’”
“But she was very good-humoured about it,” he continued.
Taylor continues to dominate the current pop culture zeitgeist with her record-breaking Eras tour and very public relationship with NFL star Travis Kelce.
Joseph didn’t reveal where or when he met the singer and songwriter, though Taylor does have a friendship with one of his co-stars.
Sadie Sink, who joined Stranger Things in its second season, starred in the short film Taylor directed for her own 2021 song All Too Well. The Grammy winner even wrote about Sandie for Entertainment Weekly’s 2022 Entertainers Of The Year column.
“She is a force to watch and a pleasure to know,” Taylor wrote at the time. “I’ll continue to feel just as lucky to watch from afar as she lights up the screen, tells new stories, and shows us new sides of herself … and we get to look on as she courageously unveils them.”
Joseph, whose Stranger Things character Eddie Munson became a fan-favourite during season four, is currently unveiling new sides of his own: He’s not only promoting A Quiet Place: Day One, but will soon be seen in Ridley Scott’s long-anticipated “Gladiator” sequel.
When prodded about his starstruck self, meanwhile, Joseph admitted that “the stuff that comes out of your mouth when you’re caught off-guard” can be “a lot to cringe about” — and joked that he and Taylor are not only besties, but already working on music together.
“We are just trying to figure it out,” he cheekily concluded.