Joey King, the Teen Actress Who's in Everything, on "Wish I Was Here" and Channing Tatum

Joey King has spent most of her life in front of a camera: The 14-year-old film star got her start at the tender age of four, with a national TV spot for Life Cereal. She's since starred in White House Down (as Channing Tatum's daughter), The Conjuring (as Ron Livingston's daughter), and the TV adaptation of Fargo (as Colin Hanks's daughter). But her streak of acting opposite so many big-name actors doesn't mean she's caught up in the whirlwind of Hollywood life. King is remarkably smart and refreshingly mature.

She next stars in Zach Braff's Wish I Was Here, a follow-up to the actor/filmmaker's debut, Garden State, which sees Braff again struggling to grow up, despite having a beautiful wife (Kate Hudson) and two sweet kids (King and Pierce Gagnon). King plays Braff and Hudson's oldest child, Grace, a shy and reserved teen who is far more interested in pursuing her hefty interest in Orthodox Judaism than in, well, just about anything else.

King with her 'Wish I Was Here' co-stars Zach Braff and Kate Hudson.

King spoke to Cosmopolitan.com ahead of today's release about the celebrity retweet that made her giddy, why her parents allow her to watch whatever she wants, and what it was like to work with Channing Tatum (for starters, it made her sisters jealous).

Teenagers seem prone to becoming obsessed with things for a short amount of time, and Grace's journey sort of speaks to that. Is there anything that you've felt that way about and then dropped?
When I want to become obsessed with something, I usually stay obsessed with it [laughs]. I don't know, with my age, a lot of girls are like, "OMG, I love what's in style right now," or, "OMG, I love this YouTube or this Vine," or something at the moment, and then, like, a year later, they drop them when they're not popular anymore. I think that, mostly, I stick with what I like.

Is there anything you like right now that your friends make fun of you for still liking?
People don't make fun of me for liking this person — I'm just one of his very hardcore fans, and a lot of people aren't hardcore fans — but I love Matisyahu, the Hasidic reggae superstar. He's amazing!

Yeah, you were tweeting about his birthday the other day!
Yes! I love him so much. I tweeted him a while ago, saying that I loved one of his songs, and he retweeted me and replied and said, "Thanks, kiddo, you're the best" and I got so excited.

So you know what it's like to be on the other end — when you're a fan of someone and they talk to you on social media.
Some people out there assume that I'm a selfish person or I'm conceited or I'm arrogant or whatever, but it's not true. They think that I don't get excited when I meet people or that I don't have any people that I'm a fan of, and I know what it's like to be on the other side — I'm a huge fan of some people. I'm a huge fan of Leonardo DiCaprio; I love him so much. Even when Matisyahu tweets me every now and then, I get giddy. So I totally get it.

Grace eventually wears a very bright wig in the film, and that becomes a huge part of her character and her evolution. Did you pick your wig?
I didn't necessarily pick it. They asked me what I thought of it, like, Yes or no, and I loved it so much. It was the best wig ever. It was amazing; it was perfect; it was so bright, so fun.

Shooting a scene from 'Wish I Was Here' in her pink wig.

Did you get to keep it?
No, I didn't. I'm so sad. I was supposed to get to keep one of them — they had like three. I don't know where it is right now.

You've done a lot of films that are much darker and scarier than normal kid-friendly fare, especially something like The Conjuring. Do you ever get scared while filming or does that come after the work is all done?
Filming The Conjuring wasn't scary; being on set was not scary at all. But watching The Conjuring is a different story. I was so scared the first time I saw it, honestly; it was so frightening, I don't even understand. I don't watch scary movies typically, so watching this was really incredibly frightening. It did its job, though! It really did ... I had to sleep with a pillow at the bottom of my bed for six months after seeing the film.

With 'The Conjuring' director James Wan and co-stars Vera Farmiga and Ron Livingston at a screening of the movie in 2013.

What are you allowed to watch at home? Can you only watch R-rated movies you've been in?
No, my parents are really laid back about that. I don't really have limits on what I can and can't watch, because the thing is with me is, I am — I don't mean to sound weird or anything — but I am such a good kid. [Laughs] I don't go to regular high school, so I'm not influenced by things sometimes. So my parents and I are friends, which is cool. So I don't really have limits on what I can and can't watch, I just have to make sure I'm a good kid all the time, and I am, for the most part. I feel like they trust me, which is good, because I'm a trustworthy person.

You also seem to be very mature for your age, and you started your career very young. Even when you're the youngest person in your films, you're never, like, "the kid."
Honestly, I was the only kid on set of White House Down and Oz the Great and Powerful, but I did not feel like it. Everyone was so much fun; we are all friends now.

Speaking of White House Down, do you feel like that one didn't get as much attention as it deserved?
I know, right?

Getting silly with her 'White House Down' dad Channing Tatum on 'Good Morning America' in 2013.

Your part was so unexpected and great. You are in the mix, you are a huge part of everything that goes down, and that's something we don't see a lot of — young girls getting so much play — in big action blockbusters.
I know! I loved my part. My part was actually not the same in the script as it is in the movie; it was a little smaller in the script, but I still loved my part. And I also loved the fact that I got to work with an actor that I admired so much, Channing Tatum. I went in for a screen test before I got the job, and I read with him, and I was so excited because I loved his work so much. My sisters, when they heard I was going for a screen test with him, were like, "Oh, my god, he's so hot. Amazing. Love him."

More silly times with Channing and his friend Reid Carolin.

So when I found out that I got the job, I was overjoyed, because not only did I get to work with Channing and get to have a great part, I also got to work with [director] Roland Emmerich, who is amazing. It was just an all-around incredible experience. Roland and I are friends now. I just did a movie [Stonewall] with him again. And same thing with Wish I Was Here: Zach is so great and we're friends now. The family vibe on set was awesome.

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