C. Thomas Howell
{{Short description|American actor (born 1966)}}
{{for|the rugby league footballer of the 1890s and 1900s|Tommy Howell}}
{{Infobox person
| name = C. Thomas Howell
| image = C. Thomas Howell 2013 (cropped).jpg
| caption = Howell at the 2013 Peabody Awards
| birth_name = Christopher Thomas Howell
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1966|12|7}}
| birth_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| other_names = Tommy Howell
Tom Howell
| occupation = Actor, director, musician
| years_active = 1972–present
| spouse = {{plainlist|
- {{marriage|Rae Dawn Chong|1989|1990|reason=divorced}}
- {{marriage|Sylvie Anderson|1992|2016|reason=divorced}}{{marriage|Brandi Howell|2023}}
| children = 4, 3 (with Sylvia) 1 (with
Brooke Langton)| relatives = Tommy Chong (former father-in-law)
}}}}
Christopher Thomas Howell (born December 7, 1966),{{cite web|url=https://www.allmovie.com/artist/c-thomas-howell-p33566|title=C. Thomas Howell|work=AllMovie|access-date=June 17, 2018}} also known professionally as C. Thomas Howell, is an American actor, musician and director. He has starred in the films The Outsiders (1983), Red Dawn (1984), Secret Admirer (1985), Soul Man (1986), A Tiger's Tale (1987), and Young Toscanini (1988). He has also appeared in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Tank (1984), The Return of the Musketeers (1989) and Old Dads (2023).
Early life
Howell was born in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles to Christopher N. and Candice Howell. He has three siblings.{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080724104358/http://www.cthomashowell.net/aboutct.htm aboutct]}}. Cthomashowell.net; retrieved 2011-12-03.
His father worked as a stunt coordinator and rodeo performer. He played the role of the Red Knight in Terry Gilliam’s The Fisher King. As a young boy, Howell wanted to be a stuntman and was a child stunt performer. He was also a rodeo star.{{cite web |last1=Schiavino |first1=G.R. |title=From Ponyboy to Horseman: C. Thomas Howell |url=https://teamropingjournal.com/ropers-stories/from-ponyboy-to-horseman-c-thomas-howell |website=The Team Roping Journal |access-date=3 April 2021 |date=21 January 2021}}
When Howell was young, his parents divorced.[http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Normal_Kid/normal_kid.html Tommy Howell: I'm Just a Normal Kid!] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722225910/http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Normal_Kid/normal_kid.html |date=2012-07-22 }}. Cthowell.net. Retrieved on 2011-12-03.[http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Marriage/marriage.html Marriage] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722220753/http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Marriage/marriage.html |date=2012-07-22 }}. Cthowell.net. Retrieved on 2011-12-03. Howell graduated from Saugus High School in 1984.{{Cite web|url=https://www.tmz.com/2019/11/16/the-outsiders-star-c-thomas-howell-alma-mater-saugus-high-school-santa-clarita-shooting/|title=C. Thomas Howell Stunned Alma Mater's Site of Santa Clarita Shooting|website=TMZ|date=November 16, 2019}}
Career
Howell made his show business debut in The Brian Keith Show. When he was older, he acted in commercials.[http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Cooking/cooking.html Cooking] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509212541/http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Cooking/cooking.html |date=2008-05-09 }}. Cthowell.net. Retrieved on 2011-12-03.
=1980s=
In 1982, Howell made his film debut as Tyler in Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.{{Cite web|url=https://screencrush.com/et-the-extra-terrestrial-then-and-now/|title=See the Cast of 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial' Then and Now|first=Britt |last=Hayes|website=ScreenCrush|date=21 May 2014 }}
At the age of 15 in 1981, Howell was cast in Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders (1983).{{Cite web|url=https://www.looper.com/602999/whatever-happened-to-the-cast-of-the-outsiders/|title=Whatever Happened To The Cast Of The Outsiders?|first=Duncan|last=Carson|date=September 13, 2021|website=Looper.com}} Howell played the lead role of Ponyboy Curtis, "the soulful tagalong greaser through whose eyes we see the events of the 1960s-set film unfold."{{Cite web|url=https://www.eonline.com/news/1251920/whoa-ponyboy-the-cast-of-the-outsiders-then-and-now-will-blow-your-mind|title=Whoa, Ponyboy: The Cast of The Outsiders Then and Now Will Blow Your Mind|date=March 25, 2021|website=E! Online}} Based on S.E. Hinton's bestselling 1967 novel of the same name, the coming-of-age film{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/the-outsiders-biggest-differences-movie-book/|title=The Outsiders: 15 Big Differences Between The Movie And The Book|date=October 5, 2020|website=ScreenRant}} went on to become a cult classic.{{Cite web|url=https://www.tulsapeople.com/about-town/coming-soon-the-outsiders-looking-better-than-weve-seen-it-before/article_3b6cd5d2-05ad-11ec-b3a6-2bf56e8b444b.html|title=Coming soon: 'The Outsiders' looking better than we've seen it before|first=Tim|last=Landes|website=TulsaPeople Magazine|date=25 August 2021 }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.top10films.co.uk/67926-win-francis-ford-coppolas-seminal-classic-the-outsiders-on-blu-ray/|title=WIN Francis Ford Coppola's Seminal Classic "The Outsiders" On Blu-Ray|website=top10films.co.uk|date=November 2, 2021|access-date=May 24, 2022|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108084313/https://www.top10films.co.uk/67926-win-francis-ford-coppolas-seminal-classic-the-outsiders-on-blu-ray/|url-status=dead}} Howell's portrayal of Ponyboy was his breakthrough role,{{Cite web|url=https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/2010/05/02/in-need-of-more-mayhem/28940088007/|title=In need of more mayhem|first=George |last=Meyer|website=Sarasota Herald-Tribune|date=May 2, 2010}} and it earned him a Young Artist Award.{{Cite web|url=https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/pictures/the-outsiders-cast-where-are-they-now/|title='The Outsiders' Cast: Where Are They Now?|website=USMagazine.com|date=May 12, 2022}}
In 1984, Howell and his Outsiders co-star Patrick Swayze reunited for Grandview, U.S.A. and Red Dawn. Howell also had a pivotal role in Tank (1984). In 1985, he starred in Secret Admirer. After filming The Outsiders, Howell co-starred in his own television series Two Marriages, which ended after four episodes, but letters of support got it back on air. He later expressed disappointment in the series.[http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Two_Marriages/two_marriages.html Two Marriages] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509212533/http://www.cthowell.net/Articles/Two_Marriages/two_marriages.html |date=2008-05-09 }}. cthowell.net{{better source|date=May 2022}}
Howell was one of two final actors in the running for the lead role of Marty McFly in Back to the Future (1985); the other was Eric Stoltz. Ultimately, Michael J. Fox was cast as Marty after Stoltz was deemed wrong for the part.{{Cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2012/09/the-lost-roles-of-back-to-the-future.html|title = The Lost Roles of 'Back to the Future'|website=Vulture.com|date = 20 September 2012}} In 1986, Howell was a hitchhiker's target in the film The Hitcher. He also starred in the sequel, which was released in 2003. In 1986, Howell starred in Soul Man, a film in which Howell appears in Blackface. Rounding out the 1980s{{huh|date=March 2024}}, Howell played the young Arturo Toscanini in Franco Zeffirelli's 1988 film Young Toscanini.
=1990s=
In 1992, Howell starred in That Night alongside actress Juliette Lewis. A film based on the novel of the same name by Alice McDermott. In 1993, Howell starred with Linda Fiorentino and Nancy Allen in the campy thriller Acting on Impulse. He then
achieved success in the film Gettysburg, which was popular with history buffs and history classrooms. Next, he starred as Mike, a motorcycle courier in the poorly received Mad Dogs and Englishmen (U.S. title: Shameless) with Elizabeth Hurley.
Following this, Howell starred in Payback and then played gangster Baby Face Nelson in the film of the same name. He directed and starred in the 1996 direct-to-video release Pure Danger, which also featured Teri Ann Linn and comic Carrot Top.
=2000s=
In 2000, Howell played a doctor stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash in the television show Amazon. In 2004, he played serial killer Kenneth Bianchi in The Hillside Strangler.
In 2005, he starred in H. G. Wells' War of the Worlds, one of three 2005 adaptations of the novel The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. Howell directed and starred in a straight-to-DVD sequel War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave in 2008.{{Cite web|title=War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave|url=https://tvguide.vg.no/program/war-of-the-worlds-2-the-next-wave|access-date=2021-02-17|website=VG TV-guide|language=no}} Also in 2005, he reunited with his Secret Admirer co-star Lori Loughlin when he had a recurring role on her television show Summerland as Zac Efron's father.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} Howell appeared as a doctor in The Poseidon Adventure, an adaptation of the 1972 film of the same name. His father's first (uncredited) stunt co-ordination was for the original film.{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20180618061319/http://www.cthomashowell.net/poseidoninterview.htm Interview for the Poseidon Adventure Remake]}}, Cthomashowell.net; retrieved 2011-12-03.
In 2006, Howell starred in Hoboken Hollow. He also became a supporter of the production company The Asylum, which produced his straight-to-DVD films.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} In 2008, Howell directed and starred in The Day the Earth Stopped, a mockbuster intended to capitalize on The Day the Earth Stood Still.{{Cite web|date=2008-11-11|title=Commentary: Fox takes action against 'Day the Earth Stopped'|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/commentary-fox-takes-action-day-122770|access-date=2021-02-17|website=The Hollywood Reporter|language=en}}
Beginning in 2009, Howell guest starred in Criminal Minds on CBS as serial killer George Foyet (The Boston Reaper), a recurring villain based on The Boston Strangler.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} Also beginning in 2009, he played the role of Officer Bill 'Dewey' Dudek, a police officer recovering from alcoholism, in the L.A. police drama Southland.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}}
=2010s and 2020s=
In 2011, Howell guest starred as an inmate on The Glades and in Torchwood: Miracle Day.[http://www.denofgeek.com/television/793926/torchwood_miracle_day_casting_news.html Torchwood: Miracle Day casting news] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120211200454/http://www.denofgeek.com/television/793926/torchwood_miracle_day_casting_news.html |date=2012-02-11 }}. Den of Geek; retrieved 2011-12-03.
Howell appeared in the 2012 film The Amazing Spider-Man.{{cite magazine|last1=Franich|first1=Darren|title='Spider-Man': C. Thomas Howell joins the reboot |url=https://ew.com/article/2011/01/10/spider-man-c-thomas-howell/|magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=October 25, 2019|date=January 10, 2011}}
Starting in 2015, Howell has had a recurring role as Dr. Daniel Stinger in the Freeform show Stitchers. In 2017, he had a recurring role as Ash Spenser, a retired Navy SEAL, in the CBS show SEAL Team.
In 2016 and 2018, Howell had a recurring guest-star role as Paul Belmont, a United States Navy Lieutenant Commander at Camp Pendleton, in Seasons 1 and 3 of Animal Kingdom.
In 2023, Howell starred in Obliterated on Netflix as Harry Haggerty.
Personal life
In the 1980s, Howell dated actress Kyle Richards.{{Cite web|url=https://www.etonline.com/news/177132_kyle_richards_reveals_the_famous_actor_she_lost_her_virginity_to|title=Kyle Richards Reveals the Famous Actor She Lost Her Virginity To |website=www.etonline.com|last=Bueno |first=Antoinette |date=December 1, 2015 }} In 1989, he married actress Rae Dawn Chong, whom he met while co-starring with her in the 1986 film Soul Man.{{Cite web|last=Moca|first=Diane |title=CHONG, HOWELL: SOUL MATES SINCE 'SOUL MAN'|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1990-06-27-9006270192-story.html|access-date=2021-08-30|website=OrlandoSentinel.com|date=27 June 1990 |language=en-US}} They divorced the following year.{{Cite web|first=Greg|last=Braxton|date=1990-07-24|title=PEOPLE WATCH|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-07-24-ca-529-story.html|access-date=2021-08-30|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US}} Howell married his second wife, Sylvie Anderson, in 1992, and the couple had three children.{{Cite web |date=2016-03-07 |title=C. Thomas Howell's wife files for divorce |url=http://www.hollywood.com/general/c-thomas-howells-wife-files-for-divorce-60549426/ |access-date=2021-08-30 |website=Hollywood.com |language=en-US}} Anderson filed for divorce in 2016.
In November 2001, Howell was acquitted of five misdemeanor charges, including hit and run and brandishing a weapon arising out of a confrontation with a skateboarder in Southern California.{{cite news|url=https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Jury-acquits-actor-Howell-2860912.php|title=Jury acquits actor Howell |website=SFGate.com |date=November 8, 2001}}
Filmography
=Film=
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable" | |||
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972–1974 | The Brian Keith Show | {{n/a}} | Unknown episodes |
| 1983 | Two Marriages | Scott Morgan | Episode: "Relativity" |
| 1985–1986 | Moonlighting | Waiter / Postal Worker | 2 episodes |
| 1989 | Nightmare Classics | Jenner Brading | Episode: "The Eyes of the Panther" |
| 1990 | Curiosity Kills | Cat Thomas | rowspan=5|Television film |
| 1992 | Tattle Tale | Bernard Sprat | |
| 1993 | Acting on Impulse | Paul Stevens | |
| 1994 | Natural Selection | Ben Braden / Alex Connelly | |
| 1995 | Suspect Device | Dan Jerico | |
| 1996 | Kindred: The Embraced | Frank Kohanek | 8 episodes |
| 1997 | Dead Fire | Tucker | rowspan=2|Television film |
| rowspan=4|1998 | Sealed with a Kiss | Detective Mick Cullen | |
| The Outer Limits | Captain Miles Davidlow | Episode: "The Joining" | |
| V.I.P. | Phil Sherman | Episode: "Val Got Game" | |
| The Love Boat: The Next Wave | John | Episode: "Affairs to Remember" | |
| 1999 | Dead Man's Gun | Henry Hubble | Episode: "The Phrenologist" |
| 1999–2000 | Amazon | Dr. Alex Kennedy | 22 episodes |
| rowspan=2|2000 | Twice in a Lifetime | Tony | Episode: "The Escaped Artist" |
| Lawless: Dead Evidence | Dean Riley | Television film | |
| rowspan=3|2002 | Son of the Beach | Jason Dudikoff | Episode: "In the Line of Booty" |
| Night of the Wolf | Sheriff Wade Messer | rowspan=2|Television film | |
| Killer Bees! | Sheriff Lyndon Harris | ||
| rowspan=2|2004 | The District | Chris Gunner | Episode: "On Guard" |
| Zolar | Hedion | Television film | |
| 2004–2005 | Summerland | Kyle Bale | 2 episodes |
| rowspan=5|2005 | Crimson Force | Captain Baskin | rowspan=4|Television film |
| Ordinary Miracles | Jim Powell | ||
| H. G. Wells' War of the Worlds | George Herbert | ||
| The Poseidon Adventure | Doctor Matthew Ballard | ||
| ER | Vincent Janeson | Episode: "The Human Shield" | |
| 2006 | 24 | Barry Landes | 2 episodes |
| rowspan=4|2008 | Celebracadabra | Himself | Contestant |
| Xenophobia | Stone | rowspan=2|Television film | |
| A Gunfighter's Pledge | Horn | ||
| War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave | George Herbert | Also director Television film | |
| 2009–2013 | Southland | Bill "Dewey" Dudek | 27 episodes |
| 2009–2020 | Criminal Minds | George Foyet / The Boston Reaper | 6 episodes |
| 2010 | Psych | Agent Camden Driggs | Episode: "One, Maybe Two, Ways Out" |
| rowspan=4|2011 | The Glades | Peyton Robinson | Episode: "Second Skin" |
| Torchwood: Miracle Day | The Gentleman | Episode: "Escape to L.A." | |
| CHAOS | Carson Simms | Episode: "Proof of Life" | |
| Camel Spiders | Sheriff Ken Beaumont | Television film | |
| rowspan=6|2012 | Alphas | Eli Aquino | Episode: "The Quick and the Dead" |
| Revolution | Bounty Hunter | Episode: "Chained Heat" | |
| Castle | John Campbell | Episode: "Swan Song" | |
| Longmire | Ray Stewart | Episode: "A Damn Shame" | |
| Hawaii Five-0 | Martin Cordova | Episode: "Death Wish" | |
| Home Invasion | Ray | Television film | |
| rowspan=5|2013 | Horror Haiku | John Asher | Episode: "I Know What You Know" |
| Sons of Anarchy | Agent Frank Eagan | Episode: "One One Six" | |
| Blue Bloods | Alex Polanski | Episode: "Justice Served" | |
| An Amish Murder | Nathan Detrick | rowspan=2|Television film | |
| Christmas Belle | Rex Everhart | ||
| rowspan=2|2014 | Grimm | Agent Weston Steward | 5 episodes |
| Category 5 | Charlie DuPuis | Television film | |
| 2014–2015 | Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce | Nate | 4 episodes |
| rowspan=3|2015 | Motive | Joe Hillis | Episode: "Reversal of Fortune" |
| Ties That Bind | Mr. Witherspoon | Episode: "Controlled Substance" | |
| Sleepy Hollow | Agent Mick Granger | Episode: "I, Witness" | |
| 2015–2017 | Stitchers | Daniel Stinger | 7 episodes |
| 2016 | Advance & Retreat | Nathan Shapiro | Television film |
| 2016–2018 | Animal Kingdom | Paul Belmont | 9 episodes |
| rowspan=3|2017 | Ray Donovan | Dr. Brogan | 4 episodes |
| Outcast | Simon Barnes | rowspan=2|3 episodes | |
| The Punisher | Carson Wolf | ||
| 2017–2021 | SEAL Team | Ash Spenser | 5 episodes |
| rowspan=4|2018 | The Blacklist | Earl Fagen | 2 episodes |
| MacGyver | Vasil | Episode: "Guts + Fuel + Hope" | |
| Dynasty | Max Van Kirk | 2 episodes | |
| The Good Cop | Chuck Everett | Episode: "Why Kill A Busboy?" | |
| 2018–2021 | The Walking Dead | Roy | 6 episodes |
| rowspan=2|2019 | Bosch | Louis Degner | 2 episodes |
| The Terror | Major Bowen | 4 episodes | |
| 2021 | Creepshow | Samuel Spinster | Episode: "Dead and Breakfast/Pesticide " |
| rowspan=2|2023 | Will Trent | Warden Sturgill Hardly | Episode: "It's The Work I Signed Up For" |
| Obliterated
| Harry Haggerty |
=Video games=
| class="wikitable sortable" | ||
| Year
! Title ! Voice role | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Injustice 2 | Leonard Snart / Captain Cold |
| 2018 | Lego DC Super-Villains | Eobard Thawne / Reverse-Flash |
Discography
= Singles =
| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ !Year !Title !Album |
| 2022
|"Rose Hill" |Non-album single |
| 2022
|"Whiskey Demon" |Non-album single |
| 2022
|"Ponygirl" |Non-album single |
= Albums =
| class="wikitable"
|+ !Year !Title |
| 2023
|American Storyteller |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|1367|C. Thomas Howell}}
{{C. Thomas Howell}}
{{Young Artist Award for Best Leading Young Actor in a Feature Film}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howell, C. Thomas}}
Category:20th-century American male actors
Category:21st-century American male actors
Category:American male child actors
Category:American male film actors
Category:American male television actors
Category:American male voice actors