The Cast Of The Beloved ’80s Movie The Goonies, Then And Now
In 1985, The Goonies hit the silver screen, leaving more than one kid wanting to go on a treasure hunt with Mikey, throw quips with Mouth, make inventions with Data, and dance the "truffle shuffle" with Chunk.
But where did the crew of misfits go after they found One-Eyed Willy's treasure and beat the Fratellis? While some of them became major blockbuster actors, others decided to go to law school. But wherever they are now, one thing is for certain -- Goonies never say die!
Then: Josh Brolin
When it comes to the main child cast members of The Goonies, Josh Brolin was one of the oldest. In the adventure film, he played Brandon (Brand), Mikey's older brother and the guy who wants nothing more than for everyone to turn around and go back home, so they don't all get grounded.
Interestingly, Brolin didn't stick with film. At least, not right away. After portraying Brand, Brolin hopped over to the stage for a bit, particularly in Rochester, New York. Although, from 1989-1992, he did play the role of "Wild Bill" Hickok in the ABC series The Young Riders.
Now: Josh Brolin
After his time crawling around caves in search of long-lost treasure with the rest of the Goonies, Brolin went on to star in some pretty huge films. Now, he's known as one of the most epic and feared villains in the entire MCU, Thanos, a role he took on for Guardians of the Galaxy, Age of Ultron, Infinity War, and Endgame.
Of course, he's known for more than the MCU. Brolin also snagged the leading role in No Country for Old Men, received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Milk, and has even dabbled in some directing.
Then: Sean Astin
The year 1985 marked actor Sean Astin's silver screen debut as the lead character of Mikey in The Goonies. He led his friends on a whirlwind treasure hunt, wanting to find the treasure of One-Eyed Willy to save their beloved town from being demolished for a golf course.
After his legendary portrayal of the character, Astin appeared in multiple projects throughout the '80s and '90s, including Like Father Like Son, White Water Summer, and even the title character in the football biopic Rudy. Moving into the 2000s, Astin's acting career would change forever.
Now: Sean Astin
Now, people don't really think of Sean Astin as "that kid from The Goonies," but that hobbit that traveled Middle Earth to help Frodo destroy the ring of power. Starting in 2000, he played the epic role of Samwise Gamgee in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Of course, that wasn't his final credit. Later in life, Astin moved on to television, appearing in the popular Netflix original series Stranger Things as Bob Newby. Most recently, in 2020, he joined the cast of Reunited Apart, Josh Gad's YouTube series. The series brings together casts of popular movies to promote donations to non-profit charity foundations.
Then: Jonathan Ke Quan
Coming in as one of the cooler Goonies in the 1985 film is Jonathan Ke Quan, aka Richard "Data" Wang. Data made science and inventing seem like the coolest hobby ever, having saved his friends with quirky things like "slick shoes" more than once during their adventure.
In the '80s, Quan appeared in other films outside of the adventure flick. His first film credit, in fact, is actually a huge one. One year before he was cast as a Goonie, Quan starred alongside Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. He won a Young Artist Award for his performance.
Now: Jonathan Ke Quan
After his time as the quirky Data in The Goonies, Jonathan Ke Quan went on to pursue other ventures in Hollywood as well as the entertainment industries in Taiwan, Japan, and Hong Kong. Some of his foreign film credits include the Hong Kong movies Second Time Around and Red Pirate, while his Japanese film credits include Passenger and Cousin Dave Stole The Cookie.
More impressively, though, is the fact that he stepped away from the camera to become a stunt choreographer for some big titles, including the 2000 superhero flick X-Men.
Then: Jeff Cohen
Jeff Cohen is the actor who made the "truffle shuffle" funny, Hawaiian shorts paired with plaid shorts cool, and eating ice cream look like the most appetizing thing in the world. In The Goonies, he portrayed Chunk, the scared and yet lovable one of the group of misfits who finds himself befriending the "monster" Sloth.
In an interview with Variety, director Richard Donner spoke of highly Cohen's performance in the film, saying, "His acting had an incredible sense of genuineness, of reality. He was Jeff — he drew from himself, and I think that's who he is now."
Now: Jeff Cohen
Unlike some of his Goonies co-stars, Jeff Cohen pretty much said goodbye to the life of an actor. His last film credit is from the 1991 television film Perfect Harmony. He played the role of Ward. While he didn't stick to life in front of the camera, he did something pretty smart to stay in the industry.
While filming The Goonies, Cohen became interested in the business side of Hollywood. So, director Richard Donner told him to think about law school. He graduated from UCLA Law School in 2000 and became an entertainment lawyer in Los Angeles, co-founding the Cohen & Gardner firm.
Then: Corey Feldman
Corey Feldman was a full-fledged child star in the '80s, starting with his role as Mouth in The Goonies. Loud, obnoxious, and wanting nothing more than to be rich with treasure, it was hard not to enjoy the character's snarky humor. Amazingly, it wasn't the last time Feldman played a snarky and sarcastic kid on-screen.
One year after The Goonies, Feldman portrayed Teddy Duchamp in the iconic film, Stand By Me. He went on to star in multiple other films throughout the '80s and '90s, including the vampire film The Lost Boys, Dream a Little Dream, and The 'Burbs.
Now: Corey Feldman
After his stint as a child actor, Corey Feldman kind of fell off the map, while he still appeared in multiple films and television shows throughout the late '90s and early 2000s, it was nothing compared to his time in front of the camera in the '80s, portraying iconic characters in films such as The Goonies and Stand By Me.
Now, he's a huge advocate of the Child Victims Act, a law that would lengthen the statute of limitations for civil claims of childhood abuse. Recently, he made a documentary surrounding his and Corey Haim's time as child actors, titled My Truth.
Then: Robert Davi
If there is one character that no one really expected to see in The Goonies, it's the opera-singing enforcer of the Fratelli family, Jake. Played by actor Robert Davi, the audience first sees Jake when his mother busts him out of jail. From there, he's either singing Italian operas or bumbling around with his brother.
Either way, he's a very memorable character in the 1985 flick, even if he is the bad guy. The Goonies isn't Davi's only notable credit from the '80s, though. He also portrayed Franz Sanchez, the James bond villain in License to Kill.
Now: Robert Davi
Throughout his career, Robert Davi has starred in over 130 films. Some of the names being quite popular with the movie-going crowd, including Predator 2, Showgirls, and The Expendables 3. Even so, Davi was so much more than his movie career; as seen on The Goonies, he has a magnificent voice.
After spending some time in the film industry, Davi focused on singing again in 2011. Having classical training, he was asked to sing a tribute song for Frank Sinatra's 100th birthday celebration. Fifteen million people viewed the PBS Special!
Then: Kerri Green
One of the two main female child actors in The Goonies was none other than Kerri Green. In the film, she portrays Andy, Josh Brolin's love interest and someone who denies the fact that she's a Goonie because she's a cheerleader and the popular boy wants to date her. In the end, she's a cheerleader-turned-adventurer, aka, a Goonie.
Either way, Green did a few more teen films throughout the '80s, including the comedy Summer Rental and the romantic comedy-drama Lucas, starring alongside Charlie Sheen and Corey Haim.
Now: Kerri Green
After her string of teen flicks during the '90s, Kerri Green was seen on the silver screen less and less. She had a nice run during 1992 and 1993, with titles such as The Burden of Proof, Blue Flame, and Tainted Blood, but her biggest triumph had to have been Bellyfruit.
She might not have starred in the 1999 film, but Green co-wrote the script and also directed. After all, the film was produced by her very own production company, Independent Women Artists. She co-founded the company alongside actress Bonnie Dickenson.
Then: Martha Plimpton
Actress Martha Plimpton had a few jobs, including a Calvin Klein campaign, before landing a role in the 1985 film The Goonies, but her breakthrough performance was Stef Steinbrenner. The character was as real as they come, being the voice of reason for pretty much everyone. Well, as long as she had her glasses on, otherwise, it was all downhill.
She had multiple other appearances throughout the '80s, some more popular than others. Some of her credits include The Mosquito Coast, Stars and Bars, and Parenthood. The latter was her most successful film since The Goonies.
Now: Martha Plimpton
After her time as a Goonie, Martha Plimpton stuck with an acting career. In fact, she's been all over the place in the industry, from starring in television series and being on the Broadway stage to voicing characters in mega-blockbusters, such as Yelena in Frozen II and Briana in Vampirina.
Some of the actress's more recent credits include the films Hello Again, Honey Bee, and Mass, while her television credits range from her starring role as Megan in Generation to guest-starring roles in series such as The Good Wife. Plimpton's latter performance earned her a PrimeTime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series.
Then: Joe Pantoliano
Joe Pantoliano made up the other half of the inept Fratelli in The Goonies, Francis. His character, while not exactly the musical genius as his brother, wanted nothing more than to please his mother. Of course, it never really worked out that way, much to his dismay.
He closed out the '80s with films such as Running Scared, Amazon Women on the Moon, and Empire of the Sun. The decade was very good to Pantoliano and paved the way for him to have an even better decade to come.
Now: Joe Pantoliano
Now, Joe Pantoliano has appeared in over 150 stage productions, films, and television shows. He even won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his performance as Ralph Cifaretto on the award-winning series The Sopranos.
And while he's worked on iconic projects such as Momento, Bad Boys for Life, and even The Simpsons, Pantoliano is more than just an actor. He's very active in the mental health field, having founded the nonprofit No Kidding, Me Too! to help remove the stigma surrounding mental health issues.
Then: Steve Antin
In the 1985 film The Goonies, actor Steve Antin played Troy Perkins. While he wasn't exactly the villain in the film, he wasn't exactly a nice guy. In fact, he was the stereotypical preppie jock who thought he was better than everyone else, especially anyone associated with the Goonies; by the end of the film, that included his girlfriend (ex-girlfriend) Andy.
Antin wound up being a pretty big part of '80s film, after The Goonies. Some of his credits include the Academy Award-winning film The Accused, the comedy Penitentiary III, and the survival film Survival Quest.
Now: Steve Antin
Actor Steve Antin went on to appear in a few films and television series throughout the '90s, including the show Civil War, the film Inside Monkey Zetterland, and the crime series NYPD Blue. His last credit is the 1997 romantic comedy 'Til There Was You.
Even though he finished acting in the late '90s, Antin didn't stray far from the entertainment industry. He just went into directing, particularly music videos. Some of his videos include Girlicious' "Like Me" and Destinee & Paris' "FairyTale." But, most impressively, Antin directed the 2010 film Burlesque, starring Christina Aguilera and Cher.
