US actor and director Sean Penn and his wife, actor Robin Wright Penn, are seeking the divorce to end their 11-year marriage, media reported yesterday.

Penn, 47, and Wright, 41, married in 1996 and have two children, Hopper Jack, 14, and Dylan Frances, 16.

They filed separate divorce papers in Marin County and both listed "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for divorce.

Penn's first marriage to pop star Madonna ended in 1989 after four years.

Penn won an Academy Award for his role in the 2003 movie "Mystic River." He had also directed "Into the Wild," this year, which received two Golden Globe nominations and four Screen Actors Guild nominations.

Wright is best known for her starring role in the romance "Message in a Bottle." She also appeared in the adventure movie "Beowulf" which opened in the United States in November.