Sean Astin Bio - Sean Astin Biography

Sean Astin: Biography

Sean Patrick Astin was born February 25, 1971 in Santa Monica, California to John Astin (famous for playing Gomez on "The Addams Family" (1964) among other things) and Patty Duke, both actors. He was their first child, but when Sean was two his brother Mackenzie was born (he also became an actor). They also have three older half brothers, David, Allen and Tom, who belong to their father. Sean was literally brought up on acting due to his famous parents. Although you may think that his first acting job was in The Goonies (1985), it wasn't. In 1981, at age 9, Sean starred with his mother in the after school special Please Don't Hit Me, Mom (1981) (TV). The Goonies (1985) followed and since then he has had a steady stream of good roles. Sean attended Crossroads High School for the Arts. He has also studied with the famous Stella Adler. Of course, we all know that starring in a teen comedy is almost inevitable for a young actor. Sean was no exception. In 1987 he co-starred with another teen heartthrob, Kirk Cameron in Like Father, Like Son (1985). A few very good movies followed, including Toy Soldiers (1991) and Where the Day Takes You (1992). More recently Sean has starred in Rudy (1993) and the Showtime movie Harrison Bergeron (1995) (TV). But his career in film has expanded much further than just acting. He directed and co-produced the short film Kangaroo Court (1994) which was nominated in the Best Short Film category at the 67th Annual Academy Awards in 1995. Interestingly enough, Sean's father was nominated for the same award in 1969. Sean is now married to Christine Astin, who co-produced Kangaroo Court (1994) with him. The couple live in Los Angeles. Even though he's a successful director, he's not about to give up acting.

Sean wanted to direct Fantastic Four (2005) at one point.(edit)
In February 2003, Sean was appointed to the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.(edit)
Sean is the son of actor John Astin and actress Patty Duke.(edit)
Sean graduated from UCLA with honors & a B.A. in History & English.(edit)
Sean's daughter made her acting debut in Lord of the Rings as a young hobbit in Sam Gamgee's family.(edit)
Sean gained 30 pounds to secure the role of Sam on Lord of the Rings.(edit)
Sean lost the lead role in Toy Soldiers to Wil Wheaton.(edit)
Sean won his second Young Artist Award for the film, Staying Together.(edit)
When Sean was 13, Steven Spielberg handpicked him to star as Mikey Walsh in The Goonies.(edit)
Sean once considered a law career.(edit)
Sean had not only starred in at least ten movies, but also directed a short film and formed his own production company all before his 21st birthday.(edit)
In June 2006 Sean was in Norway and Cedar Rapids Iowa shooting a movie called the Last Season with Tom Arnold and Rachael Leigh Cook.(edit)
Has three children. Alexandra (27th November 1996), Elizabeth (6th August 2002), and Isabella (22nd July 2005).(edit)
Married wife Christine on 11th July 1992.(edit)
Sean and his wife Christine had their third child on July 22, 2005. They named her Isabella Louise; she has two older sisters, Alexandra (8), and Elizabeth (2).(edit)
Height
5' 6" (1.68 m)--

Daughter born: Alexandra Astin. [27 November 1996]--

Brother of actor Mackenzie Astin--

Has three other half brothers: David, Allen and Tom--

Left the room halfway during recording DVD commentary for The Goonies (1985) and never returned. The recording session started late, and Sean had an earlier commitment to introduce friend Joe Pantoliano who was M.C.'ing at a local theatre. Left the recording studio to change clothes, then returned to explain why he had to leave, give a "shout out to Joey Pants," and left an action figure of Sam Gamgee to take his place. However, the departure and explanation were edited out by the DVD producers.--

His biological father is actually 'Michael Tell' , whom Patty Duke was married to for only a month in 1970. Sean was adopted at age 3 by John Astin, but considers both men to be his father.--

On 4 December 2001, Sean had his image as "Samwise Gamgee" immortalized on a 90 cent New Zealand postage stamp that he shares with Lord of the Rings co-star Elijah Wood ('Frodo Baggins'). However, Sean's last name is spelled incorrectly on the presentation pack of the stamps (Austin instead of Astin).--

August 6 2002, welcomed second child daughter Elizabeth Louise.--

During principal photography for the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Astin directed trilogy director Peter Jackson and fellow cast members in a documentary short about cameraderie and friendship within difficult working environments. This topic mirrored a significant theme of the trilogy.--

Announced at the Texas Film Festival on 22 February 2003 that he has optioned the book "Issac's Storm" and is planning on shooting an epic film centered around the Galveston Hurricane of 1900.--

While filming The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin) ran into a lake to stop Frodo (Elijah Wood). When he did this, he stepped on a piece of glass and had to be rushed to the hospital. He received many stitches to repair the injury.--

Appeared at Wizard World signing autographs on August 9 2003--

Started his own production company, Lava Entertainment, in the late '80s.--

Attended Crossroads High School in Santa Monica, California with actor/musician Jack Black. Was cast in a school play/film when Black backed out.--

Eyes are hazel, yet tend to change from brown to green depending on what he wears.--

Wanted to direct Fantastic Four (2005) at one point.--

Calls four people "Dad": John Astin, Desi Arnaz Jr., 'Mike Tell' and Mike Pearce (his step-father).--

September 2004 - Attended the Armaggeddon Pulp Culture Expo Convention in Wellington, New Zealand as a Lord of the Rings guest--

Is the second actor from a Lord of the Rings adaptation to have a relative in an Addams Family adaptation. His father, John Astin, played Gomez on "The Addams Family" (1964). John Huston, who voiced Gandalf in the animated version of The Return of the King (1980) (TV), is the father of Anjelica Huston, who played Morticia in the films.--

The title of his autobiography, There and Back Again, is actually the alternate title for The Hobbit, and, in the story, is the title of Bilbo Baggins's autobiography.--

Nephew of Ray Duke.--

Christine is expecting their 3rd child in the summer of 2005--

He is a Verizon Literacy Champion and the National Center for Family Literacy celebrity spokesperson.(edit)

Sean: (on the chances of a sequel to the film "The Goonies") The writing's on the wall when they're releasing the DVD of the original in such numbers. I think a sequel is an absolute certainty. I would love to be in it. I remain as open-minded and willing to participate as I have ever been.(edit)
Sean: I definitely loved going on stage, I loved the nervous feeling and the performance and the doing-ness of it. It always felt kind of natural and inevitable and logical.(edit)
Sean: the first stage I preformed on were the stairs to the hallway in the living room. There was a really nice platform, and when people were sitting in the living room, it was kind of an elevated platform and we would put on shows and skits. That was a pretty vibrant, if safe, bubbling cauldron of a forum to start asserting myself in.(edit)
Sean: I'm incredibly inspired by people who are able to overcome a kind of adversity.(edit)
Sean: I got a job working at a movie theater once when I was 16 and my mom made some dumb comment about how, "No son of mine is going to work in a movie theater!" And so then I was like, "Well mom, who do you think we are?"
(edit)
Sean: My dad was ever-conscious of the importance of a formal scholastic education, and so insisted that whatever pursuits and endeavors I might pursue, that they were always in conjunction with or fully reconcilable with a good, strong, classic education.(edit)
Sean: We would put on shows as little kids for, like Christmases. My brother and I would come up with skits and we would act them out and perform them. I definitely had a very strong performance bent to my personality from a very young age, and I think my parents nurtured it, fostered it, and encouraged it, and I think my mother allowed me to have a very strong personality, and allowed my spirit to soar as a vocal, outspoken kid.(edit)
Sean: I think the entire fabric of my consciousness has evolved in direct relationship to what my parents did for a living, and did for a passion � in the case of my father and some of his filmmaking endeavors. If my parents were not actors, I don't know if I would be an actor or a filmmaker. (edit)
Sean: I was told I had to gain a lot of weight because Hobbits are very portly. Peter [Jackson] is forever suggesting I have more food. 'A little more food for Mr. Astin.'(edit)
Sean: I was really short. I remember going to the doctor to see if there were injections I could take to be taller. But whenever we ran a lap, I wanted to run the fastest. I don't know why, on the wheel of fortune of personality traits, it stopped on ambition and hustle and drive.(edit)
Sean: There was a combination of not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, but also really not wanting to be stuck in Lord of the Rings for the rest of my life, and being desperate to kind of make sure that I could do something else with my life. (edit)
Sean: I'm like the universe; either expanding or contracting at any given moment. The most that I had put on was about 35, 36 pounds, and I've taken all of that off.(edit)
Sean: I'm so over-earnest sometimes. But my parents were pop-culture icons in the Sixties, and my mom has this Oscar, and I was trying to figure out, how am I going to leave my mark?(edit)
Sean: I think people enjoy reading about money, but the people who are in charge of giving me guidance tell me not to talk about it in interviews. Why not? That's what everybody thinks about.(edit)
Sean: I don't want to play the fat guy or the friend for the rest of my life. (edit)
Sean: At our school, he (Jack Black) was the serious thespian dramatist. When I see him rocking out now, I find it shocking.(edit)