Sean Penn's Real Name: Sean Justin Penn

Quick answer: Sean Penn's real name is Sean Justin Penn. He was born on August 17, 1960, in Santa Monica, California.

Real name and early life

Britannica lists him in full as Sean Justin Penn, born August 17, 1960, in Santa Monica, California. The Library of Congress name authority records Penn, Sean, 1960-. The son of show-business parents, he skipped college for the Los Angeles Repertory Theater, appeared on television (including Barnaby Jones), then moved to New York in 1980. Off-Broadway work and the film Taps (1981) preceded his fame-making turn as Jeff Spicoli in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982).

Quick facts

• Real name: Sean Justin Penn
• Known as: Sean Penn
• Born: August 17, 1960, in Santa Monica, California
• Known for: Actor, director
• Notable work: Mystic River, Milk, Dead Man Walking, One Battle After Another
• Sources checked: Britannica, Library of Congress Name Authority, Biography.com

Career highlights

Penn built a reputation for intense, varied roles through the 1980s and earned his first Oscar nomination for Dead Man Walking (1995). He won best actor for Mystic River (2003) and again for Milk (2008). Directing credits include The Indian Runner (1991), The Crossing Guard (1995), The Pledge (2001), Into the Wild (2007), and Flag Day (2021). Britannica notes a best supporting actor Oscar and BAFTA for One Battle After Another (2025).

Other notable films include The Thin Red Line (1998), 21 Grams (2003), Fair Game (2010), and Licorice Pizza (2021). He has been a high-profile activist—Hurricane Katrina and Haiti earthquake relief, Ukraine-focused documentary Superpower (2023)—and published satirical novels beginning with Bob Honey Who Just Do Stuff (2018).

Name notes

Sean Justin Penn is his birth name; he has not used a stage surname. Fan sites often copy names from one another, so we checked this page against Britannica and the Library of Congress.