Sean Kanan was born in Cleveland, Ohio, but was raised in New Castle, Pensylvania. His parents encouraged him to pursue a wide range of interests, such as acting and martial arts. One of his first roles was in the low-budget horror movie Hide and Go Shriek, but the young actor is also known for his theater work, especially with Sam Shepard's plays.


Was a bouncer at Father's, a bar in Boston. Collects baseball cards from the 1940s and 1950s. He nearly died in 1988 from injuries suffered making The Karate Kid, Part III (1989). He is related to former on-screen brother, Steve Burton, by marriage. During Christmas 1999, he accompanied Christie Brinkley and Al Franken as guests of Secretary of Defense William Cohen, to Bosnia and Kosovo where they entertained U.S. troops. In 1995, six years after making The Karate Kid, Part III (1989) (in which he performed most of his own stuntwork), he made a public appearance at the Eagle Rock Plaza in Southern California. The first person in Kanan's autograph line asked him to sign "Mike Barnes," following Sean's own name. Kanan happily obliged; according to himself, it was the first time he had ever been asked for an "autograph" from his KK3 character. Has a dog named MAX.