Sean Astin

From the marriage formed by Michael Tell and Patty Duke was born, on February 25, 1971, Sean Patrick Duke. The relationship would last two weeks alone. In the mid-90s, Sean found out about the paternity of music promoter Michael Tell but the role of father, by then, already corresponded to John Astin , also an actor known for playing Gomez in the television series The Addams Family (1964)  broadcast in the 60s.

Of Californian origin (Santa Monica), Sean Astin followed the artistic path of his parents. He studied at Crossroads High School for the Arts, where he met Jack Black . At the age of 10, he played the abused child, alongside his mother, in the ABC telefilm Please don’t hit me down, Mum . What seemed like an illusion for leading a son down the same path was rewarded by him in the form of a “goonie”. In 1985, he starred in one of the adventures that has aroused the greatest enthusiasm in the Hollywood industry: The Goonies , a film produced by Steven Spielberg and directed by Richard Donner ( Lethal Weapon ), which told the story of a group of friends in search of pirate treasure.

Sean continued his studies and went to the Stella Adler Conservatory . A year later he participates in the telefilm La patrulla miniatura . The following year he accompanies Kevin Bacon on a camping trip in Dangerous Waters and stars in Rod Daniel’s family-friendly Like Son , Like Man . He lived through the breakup of his fictional parents, Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner , in War of the Roses (1989). A year later, he founded the production company Lava Entertainment, which will release several of his own short films. He tries different genres like war with Memphis Belle and teen horror (The Willies ), saves his classmates from terrorists in Operation Toy Soldiers and crosses paths with the first films by Will Smith ( Wherever the Day Takes You ) and Brendan Fraser ( The Man from California ), both from 1992. He gets the degree in History, Literature and American Culture by the university of UCLA and marries with the also actress Christine Harrell with whom it has three daughters.

His great role, with the permission of Samwise, came a year later with Rudy, challenge to glory , true story of a boy from a precarious family who dreams of being an American football player and, like a good American, does everything possible to achieve it.

The following year the Hollywood Academy recognized his work as director of the short film Kangaroo Court , co-produced with his wife, nominating him for an Oscar. Later on, another short of his was exhibited at the Sundance Festival: The Long and the short of it .

He performs small roles in Tensa awaits alongside Susan Sarandon , My Dream Boyfriend, The Last Days of Disco, Deterrence,  Bulworth or The Last Producer before heading into the woods and fighting battles in Middle-earth. Here comes the great moment of his career, the call he received from Peter Jackson in 1997 to be part of the fellowship of the ring that JRR Tolkien envisioned half a century ago. To play the faithful and brave Samsagaz Gamgei, he had to put on fifteen kilos and spend three years filming in New Zealand locations. The experience that he had to act in the trilogy ( The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers , The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King ), winner of seventeen Oscars, marked Sean Astin to the point of tattooing himself, along with Frodo, Aragorn, Gandalf and the rest of the community the elven symbol of the number nine as a memory of the experience of the trilogy and what was lived in the company of the ring.

Flirt with the gaming world by voicing characters in “Kingdom Hearts,” “Men of Valor,” and “Battle for Middle Earth.” From then on, the Californian actor returned to his origins with dramatic comedies like Love Me Tender , Bigger than Sky or A Touch of Seduction . He had a presence in the commercial movies of  50 First Dates as Drew Barrymore ‘s asteroid-obsessed brother and Click , both by Adam Sandler .

In 2005 he made an attempt to direct The Fantastic 4 but finally it was Tim Story who took charge of it. She has also been seen in series such as Jeremiah ,  24 (5th season) , Monk , My name is Earl (3rd season) and Law and Order .