Sean Penn's Son Hopper Recalls 'Butting Heads' with His Strict Dad Growing Up: He's 'Lax' Now

Sean Penn may be an Oscar-winning actor and director, but to his son Hopper Penn, he was Dad — who occasionally laid down the law.

"He was strict, and I was always getting into trouble," recalls Hopper, 29, who is featured in PEOPLE's Sexiest Man Alive issue as part of a portfolio on famous sons. "We butted heads for a long time. But it's very lax now. He's chilled out in his older age!"

Growing up in Northern California, "it was pretty separate" from a Hollywood lifestyle, says Hopper, whose mom is actress Robin Wright. "I knew that my dad was known and that my mom was known. And we'd go on movie sets. But when we moved back to [Los Angeles], things were said to me in school. It just made me feel awkward!"

These days, Hopper, who acted alongside his dad in 2021's Flag Day (Penn also directed) says he has a newfound appreciation for his father's career — on and offscreen.

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Sami Drasin

"Milk [is one of my favorites]," says Hopper. "And then The Falcon and the Snowman. But when he went to Haiti [after the catastrophic 2010 earthquake], I'd never seen that side of him. It was just immediate, and he was really smart with it. Emergency mode is his place. I feel like he's the calmest when chaos is going on. It's really great."

Hopper, who remains close with his mom — "our humor is the same!" — is happy for down-time with his Dad or catching up when they're apart.

"My dad is really into FaceTime and texting," says Hopper of Penn. "But when he texts, they're like novels. He has to send them in increments. So I rarely read them!"