Sean Patrick Astin (born February 25, 1971) is an American actor and trade union leader who is the fourth national president of SAG-AFTRA. He started acting as a child, first appearing as Mikey Walsh in The Goonies (1985). He later played Billy Tepper in Toy Soldiers (1991), Dave Morgan in Encino Man (1992), Daniel Ruettiger in Rudy (1993), and Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–2003).

On television, he is known for playing Lynn McGill in season five of 24 (2006), voicing Oso in Special Agent Oso (2009–2012), voicing Raphael in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012–2017), and playing Bob Newby in season two of Stranger Things (2017).

Astin has won a Screen Actors Guild Award and two Young Artist Awards. In 1994, he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for Kangaroo Court. He is the son of actress Patty Duke and was adopted in 1972 by her then-husband, actor John Astin.

Astin ran for president of SAG-AFTRA in 2025 and was elected to a two-year term starting in September 2025.

Profile Summary

CategoryDetailsFull NameSean AstinBirth NameSean Patrick DukeDate of BirthFebruary 25, 1971 (age 55)Place of BirthSanta Monica, California, U.S.Political PartyDemocraticOccupationActorYears Active1981–presentEducationUniversity of California, Los Angeles (BA); American University (MPA, MPP)Websiteseanastin.comChildren3

Family

RelationshipNameMotherPatty DukeAdoptive FatherJohn AstinBrotherMackenzie AstinAdoptive UncleAlexander AstinAdoptive GrandfatherAllen V. Astin

Personal Relationships

CategoryDetailsSpouseChristine Harrell (m. 1992)

Sean Patrick Duke was born on February 25, 1971, in Santa Monica, California, U.S. He is 55 years old.

Biography and Education

Astin was born in Santa Monica, California, on February 25, 1971, to actress Patty Duke (1946–2016) and Michael Tell (1944/1945–2025). At first, it was wrongly reported that Desi Arnaz Jr. was his biological father. Tell worked as a writer, music promoter, and publisher of The Las Vegas Israelite newspaper. When Duke became pregnant, she was unsure if Tell, Arnaz, or actor John Astin was the father. Tell offered to marry her to help avoid scandal, but their marriage lasted only 13 days in 1970 and ended before Astin was born.

In 1972, Duke married John Astin. During the wedding, 18-month-old Sean called John “Daddy!”, and the priest joked, “Well, that about does it!” John adopted Sean soon after. In 1973, Duke had another son, Mackenzie Astin, who also became an actor. Duke and John Astin divorced in 1985. She married Mike Pearce in 1986, and they adopted a son, Kevin, in 1989. When Sean was 14, Duke told him that Arnaz was his biological father.

Nearly ten years later, in 1994, Sean met Tell’s niece, who suggested he take a paternity test. The test showed Tell was his biological father. Sean became close to all three men, saying: “Desi Arnaz Jr. loves me, and I love him.” He considers John his father because John raised him. Sean is also close to his stepfather, Mike Pearce, saying, “I can call any of them on the phone any time I want to. John, Desi, Mike, or Papa Mike … my four dads.”

Astin has German and Irish ancestry from his mother and Jewish ancestry from his biological father. He attended Catholic school and later became a Protestant.

President of SAG-AFTRA

In July 2025, Astin announced he would run to succeed Fran Drescher as president of SAG-AFTRA. He ran against Chuck Slavin for the position from August 13 to September 12, 2025.

On September 12, 2025, Astin was elected president of SAG-AFTRA for a two-year term, winning 79.25% of the vote from members. His mother, Patty Duke, was elected president of the Screen Actors Guild forty years earlier.

Personal life

Astin married Christine Harrell on July 11, 1992. They have three daughters. Christine was Miss Indiana Teen USA in 1984. Their daughter Ali had a cameo in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King as Elanor Gamgee, the daughter of Astin’s character, and also appears in Bad Kids of Crestview Academy as Ethel Balducci.

Astin has a tattoo on his ankle of the word “nine” in Tengwar script, marking his role in The Lord of the Rings and his character’s place in the “Fellowship of the Ring”. Seven of the eight other actors (Elijah Wood, Sean Bean, Billy Boyd, Ian McKellen, Dominic Monaghan, Viggo Mortensen, and Orlando Bloom) have the same tattoo. John Rhys-Davies’s stunt double, Brett Beattie, also has it.

In an August 2013 interview, Astin said he is a Lutheran, having been “baptized in my wife’s Lutheran church”. He added, “I don’t know if I’m a very good Christian but I’m praying the forgiveness thing is legit.”

In January 2015, Astin finished the Dopey Challenge at Walt Disney World Resort, which means running a 5k, 10k, half-marathon, and full marathon on four straight days.

On October 10, 2015, Astin took part in the Ironman World Championship in Kailua Kona, Hawaii. He wore number 143 and finished the race in 15 hours, 30 minutes, and 31 seconds.

Net Worth

Sean Astin’s estimated net worth is $8 million.