If you grew up in the ’80s, you remember Chunk — the Hawaiian shirt, the Truffle Shuffle, and the chaos he brought to The Goonies. But the story of the boy behind the character, Jeff Cohen, is one of Hollywood’s most surprising twists.
Jeff’s rise to fame happened fast. Born in Los Angeles in 1974, he took his mother’s maiden name “Cohen” and soon appeared on TV before landing his iconic role as Chunk in 1985. He even filmed parts of The Goonies while secretly covered in chickenpox, determined not to lose the role that made him a fan favorite.
But after the movie’s success, everything changed. Puberty hit, and the roles stopped coming. As Jeff put it:
“I didn’t give up acting — acting gave me up.”
He left Hollywood, focused on education, and — thanks to director Richard Donner’s support — earned business and law degrees. Jeff reinvented himself as an entertainment lawyer and co-founded his own firm, becoming one of the top dealmakers in the business.
In a poetic moment, he even negotiated the Oscar-winning role for his former co-star, Ke Huy Quan, who thanked him as his “Goonies brother for life.”
Today, Jeff Cohen is far from Chunk — but proud of the legacy the 10-year-old version of himself left behind.