Photographed by: Daniel Clavero
Styled by: Sean Knight
Written by: Jane Asher

Joey King has stepped into many different personas for the roles she’s taken on in her career. Most recently, she portrays Halina Kurc in Hulu’s We Were the Lucky Ones, a moving story of a Jewish family’s survival during the Holocaust in Europe. But for Only Natural Diamonds, King embodied the diamond dreamgirl, wearing jaw-dropping natural diamond pieces from Bulgari, Cartier, Tiffany & Co., and more.

King is no stranger to the set life and absolutely shines in front of the camera. Behind the scenes, she feels like that friend from school who you may not keep in touch with daily, but every time you see her it’s like no time has passed at all. A believer in going with your gut, whether in her next film projects or finding ways to take care of our planet, Joey shares her aspirations from her career to her natural diamond jewelry collection.

Only Natural Diamonds: You’ve been in the industry since you were four years old (!!), how would you say your approach to taking on new roles, to preparing for roles has changed as you’ve gotten older?

Joey King: Taking on new roles is interesting because I think my taste has developed in such a different way as I have gotten older, and it has changed so much over the years. My taste when I was eleven of course varied from when I was sixteen. And my taste when I was sixteen is so different from my taste now. I think the best part is that I look at the roadmap of my career and I look behind me and it’s kind of an amazing way to capture time and all the things that I’ve done.

But right now, I’m just following my gut and [trying to] say no to a lot of things that maybe I would’ve said yes to not that long ago and explore what is interesting to me now. I’m not going to try to guess. I don’t like to have a five-year plan. I’m not trying to guess who I’m going to be at that time. But I do pick roles based on who I am today, and how I feel in the moment.

And in terms of character preparation, each role is a different kind of set of tools. So how I prepare for We Were the Lucky Ones is going to be very different from how I prepare for A Family Affair. Every role is a different set of tools. Each one just requires a different kind of personality.

OND: What was it like going from those more lighthearted films like Kissing Booth to something more serious like The Act?

JK: I feel very blessed that I’ve been able to play with the kinds of characters and roles I take on. I was in the middle of filming the Kissing Booth movies and I did The Act. That was a wonderful experience for me. Being part of those light-hearted films and transitioning into more adult projects, I feel very lucky because making that transition is not always seamless for some people and it’s tough and it requires real work. Sometimes it’s an uphill battle. But I am so excited to discover more about myself in that way and see what I am capable of. Because I believe in myself, of course, but it’s also very exciting to get those opportunities to prove to yourself that you can flex that muscle.

I am so excited to discover more about myself and see what I am capable of.

OND: I wanted to talk about your beautiful engagement ring since we’re here for the diamonds! What went into the design process? Was it a big surprise to you?

JK: So, my husband has incredible taste. He’s very good at curating an aesthetic, a taste. I knew that he was planning on proposing at some point. I didn’t know when. But when he asked me if I wanted to be involved in the ring process I said no, I said I trust you more than I trust myself, to be honest, with the jewels, the whole gamut. But he [eventually] asked me to get involved a little bit and wanted my input and showed me a bunch of different things that he thought were beautiful and really cool. I’m so glad he asked me to get involved because I had so much fun looking with him. He had found Mociun and he was curious if I liked the design direction because it was very unique and less traditional. I was obsessed.

I did go to [designer Caitlin Mociun’s] store in Brooklyn with my sisters on a girl’s trip and looked at all these rings that I thought were absolutely spectacular. When I saw my ring, it was very clear that it was the one I fell in love with. It was just stunning. And so, leaving the store, knowing that it was the one, I had my sisters communicating with him just so I wasn’t doing it, and then months later, seeing it in this beautiful little box as he was proposing to me was just so amazing. The ring’s name is called The Structure of the Cosmos. It’s one of a kind. Caitlin Mociun is so talented. I never got to meet with her. I met with her wonderful employees. I was in awe over all the rings online. I knew I had to see them in person.

OND: I think that’s the beauty of natural diamonds, too, because they come from the earth, and they hold this energy. It is important to touch and feel them.

JK: I wanted to be able to interact with them and figure that out – because they’re so exciting and fun and just unique. I knew that I wanted to see what felt like my personality on my hand.

OND: Speaking of jewelry, your wedding was absolutely stunning, I was obsessed with the photos. And I noticed you wore a gorgeous pair of earrings.

JK: My lovely stylist, Jared Eng, was so wonderfully involved in the process of getting me all the wonderful things that I wore from Oscar de la Renta and sourcing all the jewelry for the wedding from Zydo.

I have a big personality, I am a very playful person, and I like bright colors. I wanted my wedding to feel very bright, with lots of color in the flowers and the decor. But I also wanted all the elements of my outfit – my jewels, my dress – to feel classic but in this way that had my personality infused into it. And so having long, dangly earrings with flowers on them, and my dress was covered in flowers… I love things that add movement. Every time I turned my head and would laugh and smile, they would have life to them. Jewelry can make you feel like yourself. And I think that having fun with that is one of the things that makes me feel most myself.

OND: Jewelry is such a form of self-expression, and it can feel so personal too.

JK: My ring is definitely the most special piece of diamond jewelry that I have. Before this ring, jewelry was something I just didn’t know much about or felt totally comfortable buying because I felt like it was an investment. If you want to have nice jewelry, it’s a lot of money. So, I was always like, well I don’t really know what’s what so I don’t want to make a mistake. But then looking for my ring and finding it made me fall in love with jewelry so much.

OND: Do you have any jewelry pieces that were passed down to you from your family?

JK: My grandmother’s engagement ring – she just didn’t wear it very much because it was so delicate. But my oldest sister, it is now her ring, which I find to be so special. And I think it’s great. I think it’s very, very wonderful, and very fair that the oldest gets it.

Fashion, jewelry, it was something that was so not a thing in my family. That’s why I think I have such a profound – first fear and now love of those things because I feel like I’m getting to discover on my own how special it can be, but it has taken me time.

OND: Jewelry is an investment and can feel very luxurious. But I feel like luxury can come in a lot of shapes and forms so what does luxury mean to you?

JK: Honestly, I’m such a foodie and I love finding very good restaurants. That can mean anything, that can mean high-end, that can mean a hole in the wall. Someone who is behind the kitchen and is just passionate and makes really good freakin’ food. I think luxury to me is being able to take the time to find amazing food wherever you are. That’s why I love traveling and I find travel luxurious, but I find the search and the hunt of traveling and getting to know a place through food to be the most luxurious part.

Jewelry can make you feel like yourself. 

OND: Yeah, I feel like food is such a good way to get to know a culture when you’re out in the beyond, just finding the good spots.

JK: I like to show love through cooking and I think that it’s a form of showing someone, “I care so much about you.” I think that is also luxurious, feeling loved. I find great comfort and lots of class and all these things in food. Food is luxury.

OND: Some of your costumes from your projects have been so transformative, like your costumes in this recent project but also, The Princess and The Act you were in crazy costumes, even the Taylor Swift music video, you were a spy. Do you have a favorite costume moment from some of these projects?

JK: I love the ability to play with costumes because it immerses you into your character. As you said, for We Were the Lucky Ones, just stepping into those gorgeous vintage pieces makes you feel like you are right there in that time, and it makes you ready, as an actor, to get in that headspace. I think clothing can be so helpful and fashion is just so magnificent. I also think, as you said, for The Act, the pieces that were sourced were so specific, so dead on, perfect for what we were making.

I have had so many favorite fashion moments in shooting because it’s a very different world wardrobe in your shows versus red carpet and styling and even fittings for interviews. It’s not at all the same. I almost feel like there’s more room to play with the wardrobe on set, it’s what’s going to be the most honest to what this character is.  I think there is a lot of freedom there.

I would have to say that on We Were the Lucky Ones, Lisa Duncan, our costume designer, really blew me away with the stuff she was able to source that was truly from the time. There was one of each thing. And I felt very lucky to be able to put those pieces on and tell such a historical story.

OND: What drew you to this latest project, We Were the Lucky Ones?

JK: It’s a beautiful story. I love Georgia Hunter’s book so much and I found it to be so compelling. I’m of Jewish background. And it’s very special to be able to find material that you feel so connected to. Because the best part about what we do is that we play characters and a lot of those times we don’t have anything in common with those characters and that’s really cool because you have to really just pretend fully. But then it’s very rare to find something that you actually have a connection of some kind to, that makes you feel so much in your heart and soul.

This was a challenging role, so challenging to dive into this material and become this person and do the dialect work and also the emotional nature of these scenes. It’s also so special to have that connection even though this role was so hard. But when you feel that personal tie, the way you get into character is so emotional and so immersive.

And so that drew me to the project, of course, the people involved. Georgia Hunter is the kindest person in the world. Erica Lipez, who is our showrunner, is remarkable. Tommy Kail has become a close friend, who I just love so much. These people are kind, but they are also really talented.  They take really good care of a story like this. Because a story like this deserves to be respected by the people involved. And it just felt like everyone was being as sensitive and as respectful to the material as it deserved. I think our finished product really shows how much heart we put into the project.

OND: You recently partnered with an animal shelter to help find forever homes. I can tell you’re a dog lover. Are there any other causes that are close to your heart?

JK: I do a lot of work with animal causes. I love partnering with them and finding ways to raise awareness with people who can adopt or foster or even just donate and volunteer. That is so important to me. But I would also love to get more involved and find charities that feel aligned with my views on climate change and environmental causes as well. Because how are we going to take care of any of these other big issues if we don’t take care of our home?

OND: What do you see as next for you and your career?

JK: This year is going to be a really exciting and busy year. I have the rest of We Were the Lucky Ones coming out, Uglies is supposed to come out this year, Despicable Me is coming out in early July, and my movie A Family Affair with Nicole Kidman and Zac Efron is also coming out. I am so grateful for this year.

I have a lot of hopes and dreams for myself, and I have been able to find a lot of gratitude for how lucky I’ve been so far. But the main thing I want for myself, which is bigger than any five-year or ten-year plan, is that I hope to have longevity. This is my favorite thing to do in the world and so I hope I can figure out some way that I can do this til’ I’m well into my nineties.

Photographer: Daniel Clavero
Stylist: Sean Knight
Creative Director: Lizzy Oppenheimer
Hair: Ryan Richman
Makeup: Allan Avendaño
Manicurist: Thuy Nguyen
Director of Photography: Damien Blue
Video Editor: Bruno Alves
Video Colorist: Natasha Wong
Entertainment Editor at Large: Glynis Costin
Creative Production: Petty Cash Production
Production Photo Assistants: Patrick Molina, Justin Brooks, Evan Local
Digital Tech: Kyle Makrauer
Fashion Assistants: Cameron Greene, Rachelle Duperoux