Sean Penn

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

139

Gender

Male

Birthday

1960-08-17 (65 years old)

Place of Birth

Santa Monica, California, USA

Sean Penn

Biography

Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is a European-American actor and film director. He has won two Academy Awards, for his roles in the mystery drama Mystic River (2003) and the biopic Milk (2008). Penn began his acting career in television, with a brief appearance in episode 112 of Little House on the Prairie on December 4, 1974, directed by his father Leo Penn. Following his film debut in the drama Taps (1981), and a diverse range of film roles in the 1980s, including Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) and Bad Boys (1983), Penn garnered critical attention for his roles in the crime dramas At Close Range (1986), State of Grace (1990), and Carlito's Way (1993). He became known as a prominent leading actor with the drama Dead Man Walking (1995), for which he earned his first Academy Award nomination and the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the Berlin Film Festival. Penn received another two Oscar nominations for Woody Allen's comedy-drama Sweet and Lowdown (1999) and the drama I Am Sam (2001), before winning his first Academy Award for Best Actor in 2003 for Mystic River and a second one in 2008 for Milk. He has also won a Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival for the Nick Cassavetes-directed She's So Lovely (1997), and two Volpi Cups for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival for the indie film Hurlyburly (1998) and the drama 21 Grams (2003). Penn made his feature film directorial debut with The Indian Runner (1991), followed by the drama film The Crossing Guard (1995) and the mystery film The Pledge (2001); all three were critically well received. Penn directed one of the 11 segments of 11'09"01 September 11 (2002), a compilation film made in response to the September 11 attacks. His fourth feature film, the biographical drama survival movie Into the Wild (2007), garnered critical acclaim and two Academy Award nominations. In addition to his film work, Penn has engaged in political and social activism, including his criticism of the George W. Bush administration, his contact with the Presidents of Cuba and Venezuela, and his humanitarian work in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Known For

  • Family Guy

    Family Guy

  • One Battle After Another

    One Battle After Another

  • The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

    The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

  • Friends

    Friends

  • Two and a Half Men

    Two and a Half Men

  • The Graham Norton Show

    The Graham Norton Show

  • Real Time with Bill Maher

    Real Time with Bill Maher

  • Saturday Night Live

    Saturday Night Live

  • Saturday Night Live

    Saturday Night Live

  • Curb Your Enthusiasm

    Curb Your Enthusiasm

  • The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

    The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

  • Golden Globe Awards

    Golden Globe Awards

  • Little House on the Prairie

    Little House on the Prairie

  • Jimmy Kimmel Live!

    Jimmy Kimmel Live!

  • The View

    The View

  • The Reichen Show

    The Reichen Show

  • aspekte

    aspekte

  • The Angry Birds Movie

    The Angry Birds Movie

  • The Oscars

    The Oscars

  • The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

    The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

  • Firing Line with Margaret Hoover

    Firing Line with Margaret Hoover

  • Where Are They Now?

    Where Are They Now?

  • Lights Out with David Spade

    Lights Out with David Spade

  • Mystic River

    Mystic River

  • The Game

    The Game

  • Gaslit

    Gaslit

  • I Am Sam

    I Am Sam

  • Milk

    Milk

  • The Thin Red Line

    The Thin Red Line

  • The Assassination of Richard Nixon

    The Assassination of Richard Nixon

  • aka Charlie Sheen

    aka Charlie Sheen

  • Everybody's Live with John Mulaney

    Everybody's Live with John Mulaney

  • Robbie Robertson: A Retrospective - From the Band to the Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame

    Robbie Robertson: A Retrospective - From the Band to the Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame

  • U Turn

    U Turn

  • Colors

    Colors

  • Licorice Pizza

    Licorice Pizza

  • State of Grace

    State of Grace

  • The Gunman

    The Gunman

  • The Interpreter

    The Interpreter

  • Taps

    Taps

  • Carlito's Way

    Carlito's Way

  • Fast Times at Ridgemont High

    Fast Times at Ridgemont High

  • Flag Day

    Flag Day

  • Bad Boys

    Bad Boys

  • Daddio

    Daddio

  • Gangster Squad

    Gangster Squad

  • 21 Grams

    21 Grams

  • Dead Man Walking

    Dead Man Walking

  • Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam

    Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam

  • The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to the Beatles

    The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to the Beatles

  • Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis

    Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis

  • Risky Business

    Risky Business

  • Hellinger's Law

    Hellinger's Law

  • Woody Allen: A Documentary

    Woody Allen: A Documentary

  • Racing with the Moon

    Racing with the Moon

  • Being John Malkovich

    Being John Malkovich

  • This Must Be the Place

    This Must Be the Place

  • The Weight of Water

    The Weight of Water

  • It's All About Love

    It's All About Love

  • Iconoclasts

    Iconoclasts

  • The Early Show

    The Early Show

  • The First

    The First

  • All the King's Men

    All the King's Men

  • Casualties of War

    Casualties of War

  • The Professor and the Madman

    The Professor and the Madman

  • The Tree of Life

    The Tree of Life

  • Beaver Trilogy Part IV

    Beaver Trilogy Part IV

  • Fair Game

    Fair Game

  • I'm Still Here

    I'm Still Here

  • Sweet Micky for President

    Sweet Micky for President

  • What Just Happened

    What Just Happened

  • Holbrook/Twain: An American Odyssey

    Holbrook/Twain: An American Odyssey

  • 21 Grams: In Fragments

    21 Grams: In Fragments

  • Viva La Bam

    Viva La Bam

  • At Close Range

    At Close Range

  • Brando

    Brando

  • Hugo Pool

    Hugo Pool

  • Shanghai Surprise

    Shanghai Surprise

  • Cool Blue

    Cool Blue

  • Sweet and Lowdown

    Sweet and Lowdown

  • The Falcon and the Snowman

    The Falcon and the Snowman

  • Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A Virtual Table Read

    Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A Virtual Table Read

  • Judgment in Berlin

    Judgment in Berlin

  • Asphalt City

    Asphalt City

  • Crackers

    Crackers

  • We're No Angels

    We're No Angels

  • Before Night Falls

    Before Night Falls

  • Loved

    Loved

  • The People Speak

    The People Speak

  • VH1 Rock Honors

    VH1 Rock Honors

  • Hurlyburly

    Hurlyburly

  • Up at the Villa

    Up at the Villa

  • A Constant Forge

    A Constant Forge

  • BRATS

    BRATS

  • The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing

    The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing

  • When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts

    When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts

  • Clinton Foundation: Celebrity Division

    Clinton Foundation: Celebrity Division

  • She's So Lovely

    She's So Lovely

  • Brando: The Documentary

    Brando: The Documentary

  • Dogtown and Z-Boys

    Dogtown and Z-Boys

  • Reliving Our Fast Times at Ridgemont High

    Reliving Our Fast Times at Ridgemont High

  • Animals in War

    Animals in War

  • The Killing of Randy Webster

    The Killing of Randy Webster

  • Inside Björk

    Inside Björk

  • Beaver Trilogy

    Beaver Trilogy

  • Inside the Actors Studio

    Inside the Actors Studio

  • Pauly Shore Is Dead

    Pauly Shore Is Dead

  • VH1 Rock Honors: The Who

    VH1 Rock Honors: The Who

  • Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune

    Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune

  • Bruce Springsteen – The America whisperer

    Bruce Springsteen – The America whisperer

  • The Human Experiment

    The Human Experiment

  • Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride

    Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride

  • Witch Hunt

    Witch Hunt

  • Searching for Debra Winger

    Searching for Debra Winger

  • The Beaver Kid 2

    The Beaver Kid 2

  • Dennis Hopper: Create (or Die)

    Dennis Hopper: Create (or Die)

  • Jack Nicholson: The Joker Is Wild

    Jack Nicholson: The Joker Is Wild

  • Cruise Control

    Cruise Control

  • Summerspell

    Summerspell

  • The Last Party

    The Last Party

  • Mystic River: From Page to Screen

    Mystic River: From Page to Screen

  • Superpower

    Superpower

  • Americans

    Americans

  • Celebrities Uncensored

    Celebrities Uncensored

  • Rosy-Fingered Dawn: A Film on Terrence Malick

    Rosy-Fingered Dawn: A Film on Terrence Malick

  • This So-Called Disaster

    This So-Called Disaster

  • Citizen Penn

    Citizen Penn

  • Sean Penn, l'enfant terrible de l'Amérique

    Sean Penn, l'enfant terrible de l'Amérique

  • Mad Hannans

    Mad Hannans

  • Mystic River: Beneath the Surface

    Mystic River: Beneath the Surface

  • Gonzo Girl

    Gonzo Girl

  • Return to the Wild: The Chris McCandless Story

    Return to the Wild: The Chris McCandless Story

  • Bukowski: Born Into This

    Bukowski: Born Into This

  • Deflating the Elephant

    Deflating the Elephant

  • Haiti Untold

    Haiti Untold

  • Sound of Sun

    Sound of Sun

  • Dennis Hopper: The Decisive Moments

    Dennis Hopper: The Decisive Moments

  • Madonna: The Name of the Game

    Madonna: The Name of the Game

  • In Thanks We Trust

    In Thanks We Trust