Seann William Scott’s Tattoos Show up in a Few of His Roles — Here’s What They Mean

Often, actors will go through some great physical lengths in order to convincingly play a character. Everyone's heard tales of extreme diets and weight-training regimens.

And then there are folks who'll ink themselves for a role, like the time Shia LaBeouf got a massive chest tattoo for 2020's The Tax Collector.

Shifting Gears fans noticed that one of the show's leads, Seann William Scott, is rocking tattoos in the flick. But fans of the actor will probably recognize his ink from some of his other on-camera work.

The Minnesota native has been most recently seen in the Tim Allen-led sitcom where he stars opposite Kat Dennings and Daryl "Chill" Mitchell.

In several scenes, Scott can be seen with his sleeves rolled up, giving a full view of the tribal tattoo designs on his forearms.

His tattoos were also visible in the Goon flicks, where Scott plays a genuinely kind and mild-mannered bouncer who learns he has a knack for toughness. This leads him to become an "enforcer" for a developmental hockey league team, where he helps a talented scorer get their mojo back to make it back to the majors.

Originally, Scott was supposed to have his tattoos covered up while filming for Goon, however, the movie's production budget couldn't allow for the actor to come out earlier and get them masked.

It's something the American Pie actor discussed in an interview with That Shelf.

The outlet mentioned to Scott: "I see the tattoo on your wrist and forearm is real and not something they made up for the movie."

He replied, "Haha! You know, it’s funny, because it doesn’t really seem all that appropriate for my character in Goon to have them, but we just didn’t have the budget for me to get there early so we could cover them up. (laughs) Apparently, this super sweet guy has tribal tattoos."

There have been other productions in which Seann's tattoos are clearly shown, like when he played Wesley Cole in the Lethal Weapon TV series adaption of the popular Shane Black four-part movie series.

According to Body Art Guru, Seann's tattoos carry a deep personal significance to the actor. The website first discusses the Polynesian artwork on his left hand, along with the "tiny symbols tattooed on his index and middle fingers."

Furthermore, the same piece indicates that this aesthetic "merges with the tribal design tattoo on his arm" as well.

The same piece also goes on to state that his "forearms are covered in tribal tattoo designs [that] are for his family members."

This includes a "tribute tattoo for his father, William Frank Scott, who passed away in 2007." The tribal design has also covered up some of his previous body artwork, according to the website. Body Art Guru writes the actor used to have "an infinity symbol on his wrist. But the tattoos have been covered up by his extended tribal design."

Additionally, "The lower side of his forearm used to have the name 'Diana' tattooed on it" in Hindi. However, this has also been covered up by the Polynesian tribal design.

While Scott enjoys the visible artwork on his arms, he has fessed up to getting some "bad tattoos" on his body that he seems to regret.

In an interview with Conan O'Brien, he revealed that on his 18th birthday, he got a lightning bolt tattoo on his outer thigh at the exhortation of his friends. That's because they thought he was a fast runner. At the time, Scott thought it would be a good idea, however, he seems to regret this decision.