Sean Penn on Losing Passion and Coasting Through Roles for the Past Fifteen Years

Although two-time Oscar winner Sean Penn hasn’t stopped acting this last decade, he’s been far less prolific as he once was, opting to choose far less roles, and not many of them have been worthy of his talents.

Still, a comeback may be underway. Penn recently starred alongside Dakota Johnson in the indie film “Daddio,” which he said “rejuvenated” his passion for acting. And with his acclaimed performance in “One Battle After Another,” he’s not only likely to earn an Oscar nomination but could very well take home the award.

Speaking to The New York Times, Penn reflects on how his approach to acting has changed over time. After Gus Van Sant’s “Milk,” he missed that sense of deep connection on set, and even though he kept taking “good” jobs, he began questioning the point of it all.

You want the same thing you find in family. You want to be with people you love, and it wasn’t since Gus Van Sant’s movie “Milk” that I’d had that feeling. So I kept taking these jobs that I thought were good jobs about good subjects with good directors and I was missing my family, my dog, and I said, What the [expletive] am I doing here? I felt like, maybe I’m done with all this.

He admits that during this period his work suffered, as his reputation allowed him to coast without fully investing. Drawing from a Marlon Brando quote, Penn says he too began to feel burdened rather than inspired.

You are given automatic cover once you represent a certain kind of quality stamp. You get away with too much. Marlon [Brando] said one time, “I really have to suit up for that one.” I remember I was doing a play in San Francisco, and backstage at the theater, Marlon’s call comes through out of the blue. He hadn’t been in touch for a few months. He says, “You know, the idea of opening in a play, to me, would be like summoning up the Inquisition.” I got to the point where I was feeling like suiting up was summoning up the Inquisition.

However, when he eventually reconnected with the joy and imaginative freedom of creating characters, it reignited Penn’s passion, making the rediscovery even more rewarding. The result is a potential third Oscar.

No question about it, Penn is one of the greats. His most notable performances include “Mystic River,” “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” “Bad Boys,” “The Falcon and the Snowman,” “Casualties of War,” “Carlito’s Way,” “Dead Man Walking,” “Sweet and Lowdown,” and “Milk.” Truly, an absolute legend.