Joe Goldberg
Joe Goldberg is a fictional character and protagonist of the You book series, written by Caroline Kepnes, as well as the television series of the same name, where he is portrayed by American actor Penn Badgley, by Gianni Ciardiello, Aidan Wallace and Jack Fisher as a youth, and as his inner self by Ed Speleers. Joe is a serial killer, stalker and former bookstore manager who, upon meeting Guinevere Beck at his workplace in New York, develops an extreme, toxic and delusional obsession with her. After moving to Los Angeles to escape his sordid past, he meets avid chef Love Quinn and falls into his old habits of obsession and violence in order to avoid the fate of his past romantic endeavors. As his troubled marriage with Love falls apart, he abandons his life in the United States and moves to London where he begins tracking down the Eat-the-Rich killer, while managing an infatuation with Kate Lockwood.
Joe Goldberg
- Character:
- Caroline Kepnes
- Television:
- Greg Berlanti
- Sera Gamble
- Penn Badgley (seasons 1–4)
- Ed Speleers (season 4)
- Gianni Ciardiello (teenager)
- Aidan Wallace (child)
- Jack Fisher (child)
Joe Goldberg
Jeff Pevensey
Nathan Herzog
Spencer Hewitt
Paul Brown
Dan Fox
Will Bettelheim
Nick Jones
Jonathan Moore
Bookstore owner
Former short literature professor
Former librarian
Former bookstore worker
Former bookstore manager
Love Quinn (first wife)
Kate Lockwood (second wife)
- Candace Stone (1st)
- Guinevere Beck (2nd)
- Marienne Bellamy (4th)
Television series[edit]
Early life[edit]
At the story's outset, it is revealed that Joe was born in September 19th, in 1988 and was orphaned at a young age. From flashbacks, it is revealed that Joe's biological mother, named Sandy Librelato (Magda Apanowicz) was abused by his biological father, named Raphael Goldberg and that he was subjected to neglect and abuse by his father. Seeking to protect his mother, Joe (Aidan Wallace) shoots and kills his biological father. Sometime after, she tells him she is currently not fit to care for him and a Child Protection Services worker takes him and sends him to New York State's Irving Group Home For Boys.
After a few years in the foster care system, it's implied that Mr. Mooney (Mark Blum) adopted Joe (Gianni Ciardiello), took care of him and gave him a job at the bookstore. Though, it is later highlighted that Mooney subjected Joe to a similar abusive treatment, locking him in a plexiglass cage vault, below his bookstore, against his will. As part of his "lesson", Mooney would teach the value of reading and books to Joe, in order to show his affection and reverence towards such activities.
Development[edit]
In 2014, Caroline Kepnes released her first novel of the thriller series, You.[2] Kepnes explained that she wrote the novel during a dark period of her life, the year her father died of cancer, and in which she experienced several other personal challenges.[3] Later, Kepnes was initially hesitant on labeling Joe, as a few readers argued that his actions classified him as a serial killer. The author then clarified her position on the matter, citing that "I remember when I wrote You and someone first referred to Joe as a serial killer. I argued 'he's not a serial killer, he meets these terrible people and has these awful thoughts, but he's very sensitive'. It’s very strange to realize you have written a serial killer."[4]
Sera Gamble, the showrunner and co-creator of the television adaptation mentioned in an interview with Collider, that when envisioning Joe, the main protagonist of the series, she wanted to delve deeply into the root cause of the pathology that shaped his amoral position to justify and rationalize stalking, kidnapping and killing his victims. When she was writing the character, she stated that "I want to understand what coaxes behavior of this nature out of that very tiny percentage of men. I like to think it's a very tiny percentage of men who would cross a line like the line that Joe Goldberg crosses".[5] In an interview at The Contenders Emmys 2019 panel, Gamble highlighted the importance of casting the right person to play the role of Joe Goldberg. She stated that "it had to be a love story and a horror movie in every single scene", further adding that if they "cast someone who was sort of creepy, then the story wouldn’t work; the idea is that it’s a lead in a romantic comedy who works in a bookstore and a woman walks in, they have a cute meet and fall in love and live happily ever after. That’s the show."[6]
Expanding on her commentary on the show's themes and origin, Gamble stated at The Hollywood Reporter's roundtable interview, that she was not surprised to hear an overwhelming reception to Joe's character amongst online fans and viewers, citing that "There's a very vocal contingent of fans of Caroline Kepnes' book [on which You is based] who were like, "I heart Joe." Essentially what she's done is taken the classic romantic hero and just peeled back the gloss and sheen and John Cusack with the boombox and she followed it to its logical conclusion. I mean, if you turn off the sappy music and turn on a David Fincher score, romantic comedies are stalker movies. The plot of pretty much every one I can think of — and we have watched all of them many times in the writers room — is contingent on the guy ... well, first of all, he has to do a certain amount of fucking up so she can forgive him. And he has to get over some of her shortcomings. I mean, that's love, right? But also, he's chasing her through a fucking airport, chasing her on a freeway, watching her sleep because he feels protective. Romantic comedy behavior in real life is criminal! And that was basically the starting place for the show."[7]
Portrayal[edit]
Penn Badgley was cast in the lead character of Joe Goldberg in June 2017.[8] Prior to the show's premiere, Badgley mentioned his disinterest in playing the character of Joe Goldberg in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, saying that "I didn't want to do it — it was too much. I was conflicted with the nature of the role. If this is a love story, what is it saying? It’s not an average show; it’s a social experiment." However, he was strongly convinced by the script and the social commentary around the series, adding that "what was key in me wanting to jump on board were my conversations with Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble, the creators, and understanding Joe's humanity. I knew that I would be conflicted about the role from day one till the last day, and that is why they thought I would be good for it, is that I'm not psyched to play somebody of this nature."[9] Relaying similar thoughts in an interview with GQ, Badgley again raised his concerns of portraying Joe, noting that he was first apprehensive at the role but later changed his mind, expressing that "no one in any position of authority could ever try to act as though we don't know that sex and murder sells, but how can it work in a different way we've not seen? That's where I think this show does something that none of us could have said for certain that we would nail. It could have been really irresponsible. It could have fallen flat and been like, whoa."[10] In another interview at The Contenders Emmys 2019 panel, Badgley mentioned that his character was "the hero of his own story...every serial killer is" but added that Joe is "ultimately, the word that’s coming to mind is un-saveable". The actor highlighted that, though there is an apparent affinity to Joe's character, it is somewhat of a "Rorschach test of a kind for us," adding that "we’re failing..."[11]