Sean Flynn in South Vietnam in 1968. Photo: AP

The remains of Vietnam War photographer Sean Flynn, son of Hollywood great Errol Flynn, have reportedly been discovered in South East Asia. It has been over 40 years since he went missing.

In 1970, the 28 year-old Flynn was on assignment for Time Magazine when he was captured by Khmer Rouge guerrillas. He was never seen again. Over the decades family and friends have searched for his remains, only to come up empty-handed. Now, going off a tip from a villager who says he saw the execution of a man with Flynn’s description, researchers have discovered a mass grave in Cambodia containing a jaw bone that has two fillings in it, a dead giveaway that the remains are from someone who had Western dental work.

But not everyone is so satisfied yet. A total  of 37 journalists died or went missing during the war, 12 of whom were known to have been in the same area as Flynn.

“Until there’s positive proof, it could be any of 12 people. My concern is there’s 12 of our mates out there. To us they’re all important,” said Tim Page, a fellow Vietnam War photographer and close friend of Flynn’s who has been searching for his remains for decades.

The unearthed bones will soon undergo a complete forensic analysis to find out just who they belong to.

Those who knew him said Flynn was a dare devil, just like his father. At first he tried to get into show business alongside him, but he quickly found it boring and became a big game hunter in Africa. Then he picked up a camera and headed to Vietnam to cover the war, only to be captured in his prime. His disappearance has remained a mystery to this day.