If there's a silver lining to self-isolation, it's that you probably have a lot more time to watch TV and movies. If you've got kids home from school, might I suggest an education in classic 1980s cinema? If you haven't seen The Goonies in a long time, or somehow haven't seen it at all, it's a movie that should be experienced by all, and Sean Astin has dropped a piece of film history on us in the form of his original audition.
Astin dropped the clip on Instagram which, according to him, has never been released before. It shows a 14-year-old Astin performing a scene that never actually made it into the final movie, so you get to see a bit of the movie that never was, as well as just how well Sean Astin fit the role of Mikey, even during the audition process.Check out the clip below.
Sean Astin's interest in releasing the classic clip isn't simply to entertain fans. He's using it as a way to draw people onto his Instagram, and then to ask them to donate to the Red Cross or give blood, two worthy causes that could both use the help right now. Considering that the clip has 115,000 views, far more than Astin's average Instagram post, the clip is certainly working to draw attention. Hopefully it is resulting in some donations as well.
The scene in question has Mikey talking about a time his parents went on, and lost, the game show Let's Make a Deal. The scene doesn't appear in the film, maybe it was only ever meant as an audition scene.
Sean Astin has previously spoken about his audition process and how it didn't actually go that well. It seems likely that the actor's story about the time Steven Spielberg walked out on his audition, was probably a different audition, or it all happened after what we see here, as this audition seems to be going great. Astin's got everybody laughing and having a good time. Perhaps the kid just didn't realize how good the audition went.
It's hard to believe it's been 35 years since The Goonies debuted. The Richard Donner-directed, Steven Spielberg-produced film, is one of those that a generation of young movie fans embraced and has stood the test of time ever since. It introduced the world to Sean Astin who would go on to become a major part of the Lord of the Rings and numerous other films and television series. But this audition certainly gives one the impression that even if Astin hadn't been part of The Goonies, he would have broken out somewhere else. This kid is just too charming not to be a star.
For years there has been talk of a potential Goonies sequel, and while the idea seems to gain favor now and then, nothing has ever really come of it. Maybe this audition will build interest again in the idea.
