If you grew up in the ’80s, you know Chunk.
The Hawaiian shirt.
The legendary Truffle Shuffle.
And the lovable chaos machine who stole scenes in The Goonies without even trying.
But what happened to the kid behind the icon — Jeff Cohen — might be one of the most surprising Hollywood stories of all.
Behind the scenes
Jeff Cohen’s rise (and fall) from child stardom happened almost overnight.
Born Jeffrey Bertan McMahon on June 25, 1974, in Los Angeles, he watched his family shift early in life. When he was around seven or eight, his parents separated — a moment that marked him deeply.
Not long after, he chose a new identity for the screen, adopting “Cohen” as his stage surname, a tribute to his mother Elaine’s maiden name.
Before his breakout role in The Goonies, Cohen was already appearing on television. In 1982–83, he was one of the kids who helped explain clues to contestants on the CBS game show Child’s Play.
A few years later, in the summer of 1985, he returned to TV as a young celebrity guest on the game show Body Language.
While filming the legendary Goonies, Cohen cemented his place in pop‑culture history with the unforgettable Truffle Shuffle, bringing infectious energy to the role of the lovable misfit Chunk.
With Richard Donner directing and Steven Spielberg producing, the adventure‑comedy followed a ragtag group of kids on a high‑stakes treasure hunt to save their neighborhood.
A funny behind‑the‑scenes detail many fans miss: Jeff Cohen actually had chickenpox while filming. Afraid he’d be replaced, he hid it and showed up anyway. According to the DVD commentary, sharp‑eyed viewers can even spot the chickenpox on his chest during the iconic Truffle Shuffle scene.
Director Richard Donner once said Jeff’s acting had a real, genuine quality — he was simply himself on screen.
Cohen described landing the role of Chunk this way:
“There were basically about four fat kids in town, so every time there was a fat kid role you saw the same people at the audition,” he told the Daily Mail.
“It was survival of the fattest.”
“Acting gave me up”
After the success of The Goonies, Jeff Cohen wanted to keep acting — but one thing stood in his way.
“When I hit puberty, it was a career‑ender for me. I was transforming from Chunk to hunk, and I couldn’t get roles anymore,” he said.
Then came the line that broke every Goonies fan a little:
“It was terrible. My first love was acting, but puberty had other ideas. It was a forced retirement. I didn’t give up acting. Acting gave me up.”
So Jeff stepped away from the industry entirely, throwing himself into school, sports, and trying to find an identity beyond Chunk.
He later joked:
“I’m pretty good at exercising and watching my diet because I know I could slide back into Chunk. But I am very proud that I was a professional fat person. Anyone can be an amateur, but who can be a pro?”
Joined the football team
At UC Berkeley, he joined the football team, endured brutal hazing (“I was always knocked on my a**”), and even became the school mic man, where thousands chanted for him to perform the Truffle Shuffle. He finally did it once — and the crowd went wild.
Jeff Cohen and Goonies director Richard Donner formed a strong bond during filming. Jeff has praised Donner for drawing out genuine emotions and natural performances from the kids, helping make the film a timeless classic.
But Donner’s support didn’t end there. When Jeff asked him for a college recommendation, Donner not only wrote the letter — he was so moved by Jeff’s struggles that he paid for his entire college education. He then helped Jeff land behind‑the‑scenes jobs at studios.
Jeff remembers Donner booming at him:
“Hey kid, what do you want to do?”
“I want to be an actor.”
“That’s stupid. You’re not going to be an actor. You’ve got to know about the business.”
It wasn’t cruelty — it was tough love. And it worked.
Jeff earned a business degree at Berkeley, a law degree from UCLA, and entered the world of entertainment law.
A poetic twist
But the twist? The former child star didn’t just become a lawyer.
He became one of the entertainment lawyers in Hollywood.
“I still wanted to contribute to entertainment because I always loved the entertainment industry,” Cohen told The Journal News.
He co‑founded Cohen & Gardner LLP, made Variety’s Dealmakers List, and The Hollywood Reporter’s Next Gen Executives.
His office is a shrine to his past life: a Steven Spielberg‑signed E.T. poster reading, “To Jeff (Chunk) Cohen, you are my favorite Goonie,” and a Superman poster from Donner: “My man, with you anyone can fly.”
During an interview with Daily Mail, he laughed:
“My clients get a kick out of the fact their lawyer is Chunk. They dig it.”
And in a poetic twist? He negotiated the deal for his Goonies brother Ke Huy Quan in Everything Everywhere All at Once — the role that won Quan the Oscar.
Quan thanked him on stage: “My Goonies brother for life.”
Today, Jeff Cohen is 51 years old. He may no longer look like Chunk. He may never do the Truffle Shuffle without “three martinis” and careful lighting.
But he is proud — deeply proud — of where he’s landed.
“I think it’s crazy. I dig it and I’m very proud of ten‑year‑old me and that he was able to make such an impact,” Jeff shared.
Unlike so many child stars, Jeff Cohen came out of Hollywood unscathed — a rarity. Even as a kid, his natural comedic talent shone through, and today he channels that same wit as a successful Hollywood lawyer.
While it’s bittersweet that he stepped away from acting, staying connected to the industry in a new role was a smart move.
Despite the challenges Hollywood threw at him during puberty, he’s built an incredible life — helping talents like Ke Huy Quan secure major deals, remaining a genuinely good person, and leaving behind a timeless legacy with The Goonies.
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