Emmy-nominated actress Joey King loves to harness the power of a quality makeup product. The 20-year-old joined the Urban Decay family in June 2019 to star in the brand’s “Pretty Different” campaign and now, she’s the spokesperson for Stay Naked Foundation and the Naked Honey Eyeshadow Palette.
But the campaign — designed to challenge “typical” beauty standards — is more than just a way to promote products. It’s also a reminder to celebrate what makes you, you. “Our UD Citizens are dynamic, global voices that stand up for what they believe in,” said Urban Decay co-founder Wende Zomnir when “Pretty Different” was first announced. “They are the true definition of ‘Pretty Different’ and embody the spirit of UD. Because being different doesn’t only mean being ‘weird’ or going against the status quo — it means you being you.”
“I am pretty different in a lot of different ways,” King said in an exclusive interview with Us. “I don’t know what exactly makes me pretty different, but I think that I was born a little cuckoo in a good way. What being ‘pretty different’ to me means being able to just not let people who want to tear you down. And I think that self love is something that’s a little bit rare and that needs to not be so different. It needs to be more of a norm.”
A fun fact about King: she enjoys changing up her look with the help of makeup or a quick buzz-cut. The actress has been shaving her head since the age of 11 for various roles, the most recent being her role of Gypsy Rose in The Act. “Typical beauty standards I’ve never been a fan of,” said King. “ I like to change it up a little bit. I love to rock a shaved head every now and then whenever I feel like it.”
She continued, “When I shaved my head it was really, really fun for me to be able to use my face even more as a canvas and just completely play with all different types of looks. When I’m having a bad day or when I’m just a little down on myself or I just want to get some alone me time, I will just sit in my bathroom and just crack open my makeup bag and play around.”
For King, a no makeup-makeup look consists of Stay Naked Powder Foundation, a couple swipes of Perversion Liner, a little taupe-colored waterproof eyeliner under her lash line and just a touch of lip balm. A new trend that she’s saving for an experimental day is what she calls a “continuous blush look,” or “having your blush go all the way from your cheekbone all the way into your eyelids.” She said, “I don’t know if I can pull it off but I’ve seen other people do it and they look like bomb.”
A trip to King’s Instagram account reveals that the beauty guru’s no stranger to a bold style — be it striking gold lids, bright lipstick or a cool cat-eye.“What’s so beautiful about makeup is that there’s no right or wrong way to do it,” said King. “I’m a huge believer in that. In my downtime, I love stalking makeup accounts of both men and women and seeing how they can take the same products and create such different looks out of it.”
As for one more Urban Decay product King keeps stocked in her vanity, it’s the fan-favorite All-Nighter Setting Spray. “I want to shout it out because it’s my favorite,” she said. “Besides the Honey Palette, that’s my favorite product because there would be no amazing Honey Palette if there wasn’t something to keep it on all night.” Consider it a must-have, that is, if it’s not a staple in your vanity already.
Reporting by Kayley Stumpe
