Joe Keery Flipped Chicago Fire ‘Upside Down’ Before Playing Steve on Stranger Things, And NBC’s Throwback Makes Me Want Him Back In Firehouse 51

When it comes to future TV stars making minor guest appearances before hitting it big, Law & Order: SVU is usually the place to find a plethora. For Stranger Things star Joe Keery, however, his second credit ever was in the One Chicago corner of the Dick Wolf TV universe after guest-starring in two episodes of Chicago Fire. Now, with Stranger Things ending in the 2025 TV schedule, NBC's official social media account for the franchise is throwing back to his pre-Steve Harrington days, and it makes me want to see him back on Fire again.

Joe Keery appeared in Episodes 16 and 17 of Chicago Fire Season 3, which originally aired in March 2015 and are available streaming now with a Peacock subscription. He played Emmett, a young man who Mouch mistakenly believed was his son via sperm donation. Prior to Fire, Keery only had one credit to his name: a single episode of Sirens.

Admittedly, I'd forgotten that Joe Keery had appeared on Chicago Fire until NBC's post, perhaps because Emmett from the Windy City in 2015 wasn't sporting the iconic '80s hair (fortified by Farrah Fawcett hair spray) of Steve Harrington in Stranger Things. NBC's One Chicago X account (formerly known as Twitter) didn't shy away from shouting out the hit show despite it hailing from Netflix, with "Mouch's world has been flipped Upside Down." Take a look at a clip:

If Joe Keery had been playing the typical one-and-done kind of guest star, there really wouldn't seem like an opening was left for his character to organically return. That said, as seen in the clip, Emmett is that half-brother of Mouch's biological daughter, Lizzie.

While Lizzie (played by Christian Stolte's real-life daughter) only appeared in one episode of Fire, one episode of Chicago Med, and hasn't been seen back in the franchise since 2019, I'm sure I'm not the only one who's curious about Mouch's relationship with her (or lack thereof) over the past decade. And since Lizzie and Emmett are siblings, why couldn't a reunion with Lizzie also mean the return of Emmett?

Of course, Joe Keery hasn't exactly been hurting for work outside of the world of the Upside Down in recent years. He (and his hair) have a role in the upcoming Liam Neeson film Cold Storage (set to premiere in the 2026 movie calendar), and he managed to film a season of Fargo between Stranger Things releases, to name just two credits. His music career is going strong as well, with his band releasing a new album earlier this year.

So, I wouldn't exactly count on seeing Joe Keery back on Chicago Fire in the 2026 TV schedule to reprise his role as Emmett, but it's at least fun to see him on screen before he shot to stardom as Steve on Stranger Things. If you want to revisit his two episodes of Chicago Fire's third season, you can find them on Peacock. If you've been waiting for more Stranger Things, the fifth and final season premieres for fans with a Netflix subscription on Wednesday, November 26 at 8 p.m. ET.