Photo: getty
She's an acclaimed actress.
By Darren Paltrowitz — Written on Aug 04, 2020
An acclaimed actor, director, writer, and political activist, Sean Penn began acting as a teenager. His father Leo was a director which helped land Penn work as an extra on Little House On The Prairie in 1974.
Penn's acting career properly took off with 1981's Taps, followed by an appearance in the 1982 hit comedy Fast Times At Ridgemont High as surfer/stoner Jeff Spicoli.
While Penn took a break from acting in the early 1990s, he quickly rebounded after his hiatus. He has since won two Academy Awards for "Best Actor" and has been nominated for Directors Guild Of America Award.
Penn was engaged to actress Elizabeth McGovern prior to marrying Madonna in August 1985. After his divorce from Madonna, he began dating Robin Wright, who he married in 1996, and would be in an on-again, off-again relationship until divorcing in 2010.
Penn has since dated some major actresses, including Scarlett Johansson and Charlize Theron.
Penn recently married Leila George.
Here's what we know about George and her relationship with Penn.
1. Who is Leila George?
She's an American-Australian actress and is dedicated to her craft.
Penn's current girlfriend was born in Sydney, Australia, and took acting classes at England's Brighton College while a teenager. She later attended Sydney Film School in Australia before going to the Lee Strasberg Institute in New York.
Her first feature film role was as Leah Lewisohn in 2016's Mother, May I Sleep With Danger? Prior to that, she acted in a production of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull in Perth, Australia. Since then, she has appeared in 13 episodes of Animal Kingdom, Mortal Engines, and the forthcoming short Solus.
George is 32 years younger than Penn.
2. Like Penn, George has familial ties to Hollywood.
George is the daughter of two entertainment industry notables: actor and producer Vincent D'Onofrio, and actress Greta Scacchi. Reportedly, D'Onofrio is who inspired her to study at the aforementioned Lee Strasberg Institute. Scacchi acted alongside her in The Seagull.
In turn, it's safe to assume that George has the support of her support with regard to pursuing a career as an actress.
3. Penn and George appear to have been dating for several years.
The two were first spotted together publicly in 2016 when seen kissing on a beach. Penn and George have since been spotted on a beach together many times, including during a vacation in 2018.
No credits are seen on either of their IMDb pages, which makes it hard to deduce how the couple first met. However, George was featured within the audiobook of Penn's novel, Bob Honey Who Just Do Stuff.
4. The couple rarely makes public appearances together.
For decades, Penn has been a magnet to political causes, fundraisers, and social justice around the globe. In turn, you never know who or what Penn will be campaigning for.
He and George made headlines this week when attending his 10th annual gala benefiting CORE, formerly known as J/P Haitian Relief Organization. The most recent public sighting of Penn and George was an August 2019 "luxe yacht double date" alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Camila Morrone.
5. George can be followed via social media.
George has an official Instagram account. The biography on her Instagram account, which has over 31,000 followers, currently urges users to donate to the Australian Red Cross with regard to bushfire disaster relief.
The majority of her posts show her traveling, in posed shots, and urging political action. A handful of posts also show her attending events related to her film and television projects, including a March 7, 2019 posting that included her father.
She can also be followed on Twitter. Her Twitter account includes unique content from her Instagram account, and its biography links to a non-profit organization urging everyday people to "strike" against man-made climate change.
6. Penn, however, is not active on social media.
While there is a "seanpenn" account on Instagram with an estimated 79,000 followers and a blue checkmark, it does not include any posts. It's a similar deal with the "@SeanPenn" account on Twitter, which has over 30,000 followers yet no original posts or followed accounts.
While George is on Instagram and Twitter, neither of her accounts include photos of Penn. The first visible post on her Instagram account is dated November 23, 2012.
Given that the couple has been seeing one another for close to four years and is comfortable enough to be photographed at media-attended events, Penn and George may be more serious and committed than reporters realize. So, don't be surprised if their next red carpet appearance includes engagement rings.
7. They recently made their first red carpet debut.
At the "Meet Me In Australia" event at the LA Zoo in 2020, the couple made their first red carpet appearance together in new photographs. George, who organized the event, was seen dancing the night away to Shania Twain, who performed at the event.
8. Leila George married Sean Penn in 2020.
In an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Penn confirmed that he and George got married. Page Six reports that when Meyers asked Penn about rumors surrounding his relationship status, the actor raised his hand to show off his wedding ring.
“We did a COVID wedding,” Penn said. “By that I mean it was a county commissioner on Zoom, we were at the house, my two children and her brother, and we did it that way.”
Darren Paltrowitz is a New York-based writer, editor and author. He is also the host of the Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz podcast, as co-produced with PureGrainAudio.com.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally posted on March 9, 2020, and was updated with the latest information.