Daniel Sea

Biography

Daniel Sea is an American filmmaker, actress and musician. They rose to prominence through their role as Max Sweeney on Showtime’s drama series The L Word.

Daniel grew up in Malibu, California, raised by hippie parents. When they were a child, their father came out as gay. Their stepfather taught them to surf and moved the family to Hawaii so they could enjoy better surfing.

They ran away when they were 16 from L.A. and moved to the Bay Area, “like a good gay kid would.” While in Berkeley, they joined the DIY/punk/feminist/artist space Gilman Street Project, studied improv acting in Laney College, and played in several punk rock bands, including The Gr’ups and Cypher in the Snow.

About their sexuality, they have said:

But I…don’t believe that gender is just binary, and I never have, so that’s what pulls me to sometimes politically identify as a lesbian, because I’m a feminist, and I feel like women are still so suppressed. I don’t feel like we’ve come that far. But I also feel like there are people all along the spectrum, so in that sense, I feel like I would be more bisexual or just, you know, open-ended.

Sea later came out as non-binary and has the pronouns they/them and he/him in their bio on Instagram.