Actor Joseph Quinn is arguably the biggest breakout of the fourth season of Stranger Things. His character, Eddie Munson, won hearts as the antihero of the season when falsely accused of Chrissy Cunningham’s murder, before breaking hearts in his tragic yet heroic death.
The role of Eddie may be the English actor’s most recognizable role, but Joseph Quinn has had an impressive acting resumé long before Stranger Things. With his new rise to prominence, there are several things new fans should know about the actor.
His Scouse Accent Impression Comes From His Mother
Many Stranger Things fans may have been surprised to learn that Joseph Quinn is not American in real life due to his impressive accent on the show, and is actually English in real life. On the press tour for Stranger Things, Joseph has shown off his talent for doing accents in various interviews, including the Liverpudlian accent.
He recited Eddie’s opening monologue on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon, and got a laugh from the audience during the accent challenge when “Liverpool” came up on the screen. “My mum’s from Liverpool, and she sounds exactly like that”, he explained, as shown in this clip.
He Was On Game of Thrones
Joseph Quinn joins other actors like Hannah Waddingham and Pedro Pascal, who were on the TV show Game of Thrones for a brief time before becoming a household name on other projects. Joseph played Koner, a soldier at the gate of Winterfell that refuses to let in Arya Stark.
A dramatically different role from Stranger Things, Joseph’s 2-minute appearance on Game of Thrones shows off how diverse his acting talent is. He also does an impressive Northern English accent as well, another example of his impressive list of accents.
He’s Worked With Some Big Stars Before Stranger Things
Stranger Things already has some very famous actors on the show, some of which were already well known before the show. Others like Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour have made a name for themselves on the show and gone on to act in many different TV shows and movies.
Stranger Things was not Joseph Quinn’s first time working with famous faces, however. He performed alongside Olivia Colman in the West End play “Mosquitoes” back in 2017, and also worked with another Oscar winner, Helen Mirren, on the limited 2019 series Catherine The Great.
He Was A Guitar Player Before Stranger Things
The 1986 Metallica song “Master of Puppets” is not a beginner’s choice to play on guitar. The eight-minute-long song has a complicated, extensive guitar solo three minutes in. Many may assume that the song may have been pre-recorded on the show, but it was actually Joseph Quinn playing the guitar.
Although he had not played Master of Puppets before the show, Joseph already knew how to play the guitar long before he was cast as Eddie Munson. “I’ve been playing since I was young”, Joseph said, adding that when he was told he would be performing the song, “I went and bought the guitar and started practicing manically” (via The Hollywood Reporter).
He’s A Fan of The “Chrissy Wake Up!” Meme
In his brief time on Stranger Things, Eddie Munson has created many memes across the internet. Most famously, Schmoyoho’s remix of Eddie trying to snap Chrissy out of her internal visions of Vecna has gone viral, in a song known as “Chrissy, wake up!”.
The song has received millions of views on TikTok, Youtube, and all across the web. It turns out that Joseph Quinn is a fan of the song too, telling Jimmy Fallon that the song is always “floating around” his head (via Uproxx).
Metallica Loved His Rendition of Master of Puppets
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and the band Metallica was certainly flattered by Eddie Munson’s cover of “Master of Puppets”. The iconic rock band, similarly to Kate Bush, saw their song re-enter the music charts after featuring on Stranger Things, and they had a lot of praise for Joseph Quinn.
In recent concerts, Metallica has shown the scene of Eddie playing guitar on their on-stage screens while playing the song. In a kind gesture, Metallica posted a video of Joseph meeting the band and playing the song together, before signing the guitar and giving it to him as a gift.
He Thought Eddie’s Hair in Stranger Things Was “Ridiculous”
Eddie Munson’s hair on Stranger Things is arguably his most recognizable feature. His long, shaggy hair is very reminiscent of trends of the 1980s, especially for fans of rock music. What viewers may not know is that the hair wasn’t real, and Joseph Quinn wore a wig during filming.
The impressive wig was nicknamed “the beast” on set. In an interview, Joseph joked that “99.7% of the work is that wig” in channeling the 1980s. He also said, “It’s objectively ridiculous. When I take it off, that helps me go unrecognized, so it’s been a blessing in that respect” (via The Guardian).
He Would Love To Be In Lord of The Rings
Joseph Quinn has a nerdy side like his character Eddie Munson, and loves the movies of the Lord of The Rings franchise. Eddie makes multiple references to the series throughout his appearance on the show, referring to the Upside Down as Mordor.
In an interview with The Glass Magazine, Joseph was asked what movie character he would star in a remake. Joseph responded “All the characters in the Lord of the Rings trilogy”. With a new Lord Of The Rings series coming out soon, maybe the actor will get his wish.
He’s Good Friends With Mason Dye
Eddie Munson and Jason Carver are sworn enemies on Stranger Things. Jason was suspicious of Eddie’s interests in heavy metal and Dungeons and Dragons, and Eddie is resentful of popular kids at his school. When Jason’s girlfriend Chrissy is found dead at Eddie’s home, Jason and his friends go on a manhunt for Eddie.
In real life, however, the pair actually get along very well. Mason Dye said he is “super close” to Joseph, and that “we had three weeks of just hanging out nonstop. We’d go on dates, went to the aquarium” (via CheatSheet). Given that they were both the new kids in season 4, it’s no surprise they bonded.
He Was Detained At The Airport With Demands He Return For Stranger Things 5
Eddie Munson is such a charming character that even airport security can’t resist telling the actor how much they like him. When Joseph Quinn was questioned over why he was traveling to the US, he found fans in the strangest of places.
When the immigration department interviewer didn’t believe Joseph’s claim that he was traveling to be on Jimmy Fallon’s show, a member of staff recognized him and said “leave Eddie alone”. The interviewer then recognized the actor and asked him if he was coming back for season 5, causing Joseph to quip “I hope so!” (via NME).
