they can't. Annie Potts, an aquarium worker, tells Toni they will take good care of him, that they will love having him there, and that she will get to visit him whenever she wants. She reluctantly accepts the notion, and tells Andre that she loves him and will visit him all the time. As summer comes around, Billy and Mark's relationship improves. Harry repairs relations with his family, and having been offered a research job in marine mammal protection, steps down as harbor master, nominating Billy to take his place. Toni comes to the realization that Andre would be happier in the wild, being a wild animal, and he is subsequently released. The Whitneys do not expect to see him again, and Toni wonders if he is making new friends with the wild seals. Multiple alleged sightings of Andre are reported, until a friend of the Whitneys spots him nearby, and informs them that he is on his way. The entire town of Rockport flocks to the harbor to watch him returning home to his family. The film ends with an adult Toni narrating that his life became legend after he made his first trip home, that he spent every winter at the aquarium, and every spring he was released to swim home to Rockport. She narrates that by the time he was twenty-four years old he could hardly see, but still made his final trip home, and that in all her past and future, she'll never have a better friend than him. Cast Tina Majorino as Toni Whitney Keith Carradine as Harry Whitney Chelsea Field as Thalice Whitney Aidan Pendleton as Paula Whitney Shane Meier as Steve Whitney Keith Szarabajka as Billy Baker Joshua Jackson as Mark Baker Shirley Broderick as Mrs. McCann Andrea Libman as Mary May Joy Coghill as Betsy Gregory Edward Smith as Bobby Tory as Andre, based on the real seal Andre the Seal Jay Brazeau as Griff Armstrong Production The film is based on the book A Seal Called Andre, co-written by the seal's owner, Harry Goodridge, and Lew Dietz, which describes the true story of Andre. The location, approximate dates, first names, ages and occupations of the real family members are all preserved, although two of the Goodridge children, Carol and Susan, are not depicted in the film. Andre really did perform tricks for people down at the harbour, becoming a celebrity. He