Sean Penn, wife file for divorce

Actors Sean Penn and Robin Wright Penn are divorcing after 11 years of marriage, according to court papers filed Dec. 21.

The couple are seeking joint custody of their two children, 14-year-old Hopper Jack and 16-year-old Dylan Frances. Divorce papers indicate the couple separated Dec. 1 and list "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the separation.

Penn's publicist Mara Buxbaum confirmed the divorce on Friday but would not divulge details.

The pair metin 1990 and were married in 1996.

The 47-year-old Penn, who had a bad-boy reputation and a previous marriage to pop star Madonna, has become one of the top actors of his generation.

After making a splash in 1982's Fast Times At Ridgemont High as the drug-addled Jeff Spicoli, Penn went on to star in highly acclaimed films such as Carlito's Way and Dead Man Walking.

He captured a best actor Oscar for 2003's Mystic River.Most recently, he's received high marks for directing the film adaptation of the book Into The Wild, which recounts the true story of drifter Christopher McCandless.

The movie has garnered four nominations for next year's Screen Actors Guild Awards, considered a precursor of the Oscars.

Robin Wright Penn has starred with her husband in several films, including the critically acclaimed State of Grace (1990), She's So Lovely in 1997 and Hurlyburly (1998).

Wright Penn, who gained fame through her roles in The Princess Bride and Forrest Gump, once said she and husband complemented each other. She calmed Penn down while he helped boost her confidence.

"He helped me to believe that I could be strong and stand up for myself," the Golden Globe-winning actress told the Los Angeles Times.

The 41-year-old actress, whose recentcredits including Breaking and Entering and Beowulf, is a former model whose acting career began in the 1980s with the soap opera Santa Barbara.