C. Thomas Howell
 |
C. Thomas Howell | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Howell at the 2013 Peabody Awards | |
| Born | Christopher Thomas Howell December 7, 1966 Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Tommy Howell Tom Howell |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, film director |
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Spouse(s) | Rae Dawn Chong (1989–1990) Sylvie Anderson (1992–present) |
| Children | 3 |
Christopher Thomas Howell (born December 7, 1966)[1] is an American actor and director. He has starred in the films Soul Man, The Hitcher, Grandview U.S.A., Red Dawn, Secret Admirer and The Outsiders. He has also appeared in Gettysburg as Thomas Chamberlain, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, The Amazing Spider-Man, Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox and Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay.
Early life
Howell was born in Van Nuys, Los Angeles to Christopher N. and Candice Howell. He has two sisters, Stacy and Candy, and a brother, John.[2]
His father worked as a stunt coordinator and rodeo performer. As a young boy, Howell wanted to be a stuntman and was a child stunt performer. He was also a rodeo star. He began acting at the age of four, when he was cast in the Brian Keith Show episode, "The Little People".
When Howell was young, his parents divorced.[3][4] Howell graduated from Saugus High School in 1984.
Career
Howell's showbiz debut was acting in The Brian Keith Show episode "The Little People" as a little boy whose ears are being checked out by a doctor. When he got older, he tried stunt acting like his father and worked on commercials for a while.[5]
He tried rodeo riding for a few years. In 1982, he made his film debut as Tyler in Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Afterward, at 15, he was cast as the lead role Ponyboy Curtis in Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders, which earned him a Young Artist Award.[2]
1980s
In 1984 he and Outsiders co-star, Patrick Swayze, reunited for Grandview, U.S.A., also with Jamie Lee Curtis, and Red Dawn, with Charlie Sheen and Lea Thompson. Howell also had a pivotal role in Tank, with James Garner and Jenilee Harrison. In 1985 he again starred in the lead role in Secret Admirer, opposite Lori Loughlin and Kelly Preston.
Howell was one of two final actors in the running to play Marty McFly in Back to the Future the other being Eric Stoltz, who was eventually selected.[6] Michael J. Fox would later go on to replace Stoltz after filming had begun.
In 1986, he played a hitchhiker's target in the film The Hitcher. The sequel, in which he also starred, was released in 2003. He starred as a white student who pretends to be black to receive a scholarship in the poorly received Soul Man, which currently holds an aggregated score of 14% at Rotten Tomatoes.[7]
Howell has since stated that he does not regret playing the main character in blackface and that Soul Man was "an important part of [his] life" and "an important film" for racial relations in the United States.[8]
In 1988, Howell played the young Arturo Toscanini in the story of the world-renowned conductors debut in Franco Zeffirelli's Giovane Toscanini with Irma Capece Minutolo and Elizabeth Taylor. The film was never released domestically.
1990s
At the end of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, Howell appeared in The Return of the Musketeers and Side Out. In 1993, he starred with Linda Fiorentino and Nancy Allen in the campy thriller Acting on Impulse.
After several straight-to-video features and a starring role in That Night, he achieved success again in the film Gettysburg, which was popular with history buffs and history classrooms. He starred as Mike, a motorcycle courier in Mad Dogs and Englishmen (U.S. title: Shameless) with Elizabeth Hurley.
His made-for-television film credits include Suspect Device, Sealed with a Kiss and Dead Fire. He starred in Dads, an unsold pilot. He also appeared in the short-lived TV series Kindred: The Embraced.
He started an interest in crime-thrillers after starring in Payback and playing gangster Baby Face Nelson in a film of the same name. He went on to direct and star in the 1996 direct-to-video release, Pure Danger, featuring alongside Teri Ann Linn and prop comic, Carrot Top.
2000s
Howell returned to acting in the 2000s in films such as Asylum Days, the Gods and Generals prequel to Gettysburg, and The Hillside Strangler, in which he played serial killer Kenneth Bianchi.
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]
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.[citation needed]
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. After War of the Worlds, he spent time directing straight to-DVD films. [citation needed]
Also in 2008, he directed and starred in The Day the Earth Stopped, a mockbuster intended to capitalize on The Day the Earth Stood Still.[citation needed]
He appeared as a doctor in The Poseidon Adventure, an adaptation of the 1972 film of the same name. His father's first stunt co-ordination was for the original film,[9] albeit uncredited. He briefly hosted a show on KLSX later that year.[citation needed]
2010s
Howell appeared in the 2012 film The Amazing Spider-Man.[10]
Television work
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,[11] but eventually found it more satisfying.
After Two Marriages, Howell made guest appearances in shows like Moonlighting and The Hitchhiker. In 2000, Howell played a doctor stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash in Amazon.
He initially turned down a guest role in ER after missing out on a role he wanted, but his wife signed him up after yet another offer. Following ER, he guest appeared in 24. He guest starred in five episodes of Criminal Minds on CBS as serial killer George Foyet (The Boston Reaper), a recurring villain based on the Zodiac Killer.[citation needed]
Howell has played the role of Officer Bill 'Dewey' Dudek, a police officer recovering from alcoholism, in the L.A. police drama Southland since 2009.[citation needed] He appeared in Seasons 1, 2, 3, and 4 and was promoted to a series regular for Season 5, which began in February 2013. The series was cancelled on May 10, 2013.[citation needed]
In 2011, he guest starred on The Glades and in Torchwood: Miracle Day.[12]
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.
Off-screen
Howell has worked with Francis Ford Coppola many times and in other areas of making motion pictures including writing, producing, and directing. In 1995, he wrote and directed Hourglass, in which he starred with Sofia Shinas. The following year, he helped produce The Big Fall and Pure Danger.[citation needed]
Howell did not write or direct another film until 2004. He and his father co-wrote the made-for-television film Hope Ranch, which Howell produced. Howell went on to write and produce Blind Injustice the next year. Two years later he produced The Stolen Moments of September.[citation needed]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial | Tyler | Credited as Tom Howell |
| 1983 | The Outsiders | Ponyboy Curtis | |
| 1984 | Tank | Billy | |
| 1984 | Grandview, U.S.A. | Tim Pearson | |
| 1984 | Red Dawn | Robert Morris | |
| 1985 | Secret Admirer | Michael Ryan | |
| 1986 | The Hitcher | Jim Halsey | |
| 1986 | Soul Man | Mark Watson | |
| 1987 | A Tiger's Tale | Bubber Drums | |
| 1988 | Young Toscanini | Arturo Toscanini | |
| 1989 | The Return of the Musketeers | Raoul | |
| 1990 | Far Out Man | Himself | |
| 1990 | Side Out | Monoroe Clark | |
| 1990 | Kid | Kid | |
| 1992 | Nickel & Dime | Jack Stone | |
| 1992 | Breaking the Rules | Gene Michaels | |
| 1992 | That Night | Rick | |
| 1992 | To Protect and Serve | Egan | |
| 1993 | Jailbait | Sergeant Lee Teffler | Direct-to-video |
| 1993 | Gettysburg | Thomas Chamberlain | |
| 1993 | Treacherous | Micky Stewart | |
| 1994 | Teresa's Tattoo | Carl | |
| 1995 | Payback | Oscar Bonsetter | |
| 1995 | Dangerous Indiscretion | Jim | |
| 1995 | Mad Dogs and Englishmen | Mike | |
| 1995 | Hourglass | Michael Jardine | Direct-to-video |
| 1996 | The Sweeper | Mark Goddard | Direct-to-video |
| 1996 | Baby Face Nelson | Baby Face Nelson | |
| 1996 | Pure Danger | Johnie Dean | Direct-to-video |
| 1997 | The Big Fall | Blaise Rybeck | Direct-to-video |
| 1997 | Laws of Deception | Evan Marino | |
| 1997 | Last Lives | Aaron | |
| 1997 | Sleeping Dogs | Sanchez Boon | |
| 1997 | Dilemma | Thomas "Quin" Quinlan | |
| 1997 | Matter of Trust | Michael D'Angelo | Also known as The Surgeon |
| 1998 | Shepherd | Boris Dakota | |
| 1998 | Charades | Evan | Also known as Felons |
| 1998 | Fatal Affair | Malcolm "Mack" Maddox | |
| 1999 | The Glass Jar | Lanois | |
| 1999 | Avalanche | Jack | |
| 1999 | Hitman's Run | Tom Holly | |
| 1999 | The Prince and the Surfer | Dean | Direct-to-video |
| 1999 | Enemy Action | John Reed | |
| 2000 | The Million Dollar Kid | Valentino | |
| 2000 | Hot Boyz | Officer Roberts | Direct-to-video |
| 2000 | The Crimson Code | J.B. Gaines | Also known as Red Team |
| 2001 | WillFull | Nat Wolff | |
| 2001 | XCU: Extreme Close Up | Geoffrey Liddy | |
| 2001 | Separate Ways | Tom Milton | |
| 2001 | Asylum Days | Nathan Devine | |
| 2001 | Askari | Joss McKinley | |
| 2003 | Net Games | Adam Vance | |
| 2003 | Gods and Generals | Thomas Chamberlain | |
| 2003 | The Hitcher II: I've Been Waiting | Jim Halsey | Direct-to-video |
| 2004 | Hidalgo | Preston Webb | |
| 2004 | Nursie | Zack | |
| 2004 | The Hillside Strangler | Kenneth Bianchi | |
| 2004 | A Killer Within | Addison Terrill | |
| 2005 | The Lost Angel | Kuratha | |
| 2005 | Glass Trap | Curtis | Direct-to-video |
| 2005 | The Keeper: The Legend of Omar Khayyam | Coach Fielding | |
| 2005 | H. G. Wells' War of the Worlds | George Herbert | Direct-to-video |
| 2006 | Hoboken Hollow | Clayton Connelly | |
| 2006 | The Da Vinci Treasure | Michael Archer | Direct-to-video |
| 2006 | The Far Side of Jericho | Little Jimmy Thorton | |
| 2007 | The Haunting of Marsten Manor | Captain Williams | |
| 2007 | Fighting Words | David Settles | |
| 2007 | The Stolen Moments of September | Sisner | |
| 2007 | Dead Letters | KC | Also known as Cold Ones |
| 2008 | House of Fallen | Thomas | |
| 2008 | Big Game | Cody "Sully" Sullivan | |
| 2008 | War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave | George Herbert | Also director Direct-to-video |
| 2008 | Toxic | Joe | Direct-to-video |
| 2008 | The Thirst: Blood War | Jed | |
| 2008 | The Day the Earth Stopped | Josh Myron | Also director Direct-to-video |
| 2008 | Mutant Vampire Zombies from the Hood! | David | |
| 2008 | The Grind | Luke | |
| 2009 | The Jailhouse | Seth Delray | |
| 2009 | The Land That Time Forgot | Frost Michaels | Also director Direct-to-video |
| 2009 | American Pie Presents: The Book of Love | Alumnus Guy #2 | Direct-to-video |
| 2009 | Secret at Arrow Lake | Daniel | |
| 2009 | Fuel | Shane | |
| 2009 | Camouflage | Stanley | |
| 2010 | Street Poet | David | |
| 2010 | The Terror Experiment | Chief Grasso | |
| 2010 | Flatline | Teacher | |
| 2010 | Cupid's Arrow | Professor Grimes | |
| 2011 | Restitution | John Youngstown | |
| 2012 | Wedding Day | Russ | |
| 2012 | Commander and Chief | Shrub | |
| 2012 | The Amazing Spider-Man | Troy | |
| 2012 | Chilly Christmas | Patrick Cole | Direct-to-video |
| 2012 | MoniKa | Double | |
| 2012 | Escape | Paul Jordan | |
| 2013 | Don't Pass Me By | Jack | |
| 2013 | The Devil's Dozen | Tom | |
| 2013 | Lost on Purpose | Delbert Fergeson | |
| 2013 | Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox | Eobard Thawne / Professor Zoom (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2013 | Storm Rider | Mitch | |
| 2014 | Confessions of a Womanizer | Tony | |
| 2014 | Bigfoot Wars | Zeke | |
| 2014 | A Magic Christmas | Jack Carter | |
| 2014 | Borrowed Moments | Jack | |
| 2015 | Spirit Riders | Keith | |
| 2015 | Rivers 9 | Sheriff Quentin | |
| 2015 | Justice League: Gods and Monsters | Dr. Will Magnus (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2015 | Woodlawn | Coach George "Shorty" White | |
| 2015 | A Christmas Eve Miracle | Jack Carter | |
| 2015 | Magic Hour | Tom Worthy | |
| 2015 | Lazarus Rising | Silent Cal | |
| 2016 | Blood Lust | Ryan | |
| 2016 | Attack of the Killer Donuts | Officer Roberts | |
| 2016 | LBJ | Walter Jenkins | |
| 2016 | Sick People | Dr. Sam Zimmerman | |
| 2017 | The Shadow People | Kaine | |
| 2017 | Disconnected | Robert Crawford | |
| 2017 | A Question of Faith | John Danielson | |
| 2018 | Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay | Eobard Thawne / Professor Zoom (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2018 | Dirty Dealing 3D | Carter | |
| 2018 | The Rack Pack | Ted | |
| 2018 | Beast Mode | Breen Nash | |
| 2018 | My B.F.F. | Ben Wilkens | |
| 2019 | Rich Boy, Rich Girl | Blake | Completed |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Two Marriages | Scott Morgan | Episode: "Relativity" |
| 1985/1986 | Moonlighting | Waiter, Postal Worker | Episodes: "Lady in the Iron Mask" and "Yours, Very Deadly" |
| 1989 | Nightmare Classics | Jenner Brading | Episode: "The Eyes of the Panther" |
| 1990 | Curiosity Kills | Cat Thomas | Television film |
| 1992 | Tattle Tale | Bernard Sprat | Television film |
| 1993 | Acting on Impulse | Paul Stevens | Television film |
| 1994 | Natural Selection | Ben Braden / Alex Connelly | Television film |
| 1995 | Suspect Device | Dan Jerico | Television film |
| 1996 | Kindred: The Embraced | Frank Kohanek | 8 episodes |
| 1997 | Dead Fire | Tucker | Television film |
| 1998 | Sealed with a Kiss | Detective Mick Cullen | Television film |
| 1998 | The Outer Limits | Captain Miles Davidlow | Episode: "The Joining" |
| 1998 | V.I.P | Phil Sherman | Episode: "Val Got Game" |
| 1998 | 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 |
| 2000 | Twice in a Lifetime | Tony | Episode: "The Escaped Artist" |
| 2000 | Lawless: Dead Evidence | Dean Riley | Television film |
| 2002 | Son of the Beach | Jason Dudikoff | Episode: "In the Line of Booty" |
| 2002 | Night of the Wolf | Sheriff Wade Messer | Television film |
| 2002 | Killer Bees! | Sheriff Lyndon Harris | Television film |
| 2004 | The District | Chris Gunner | Episode: "On Guard" |
| 2004 | Zolar | Hedion | Television film |
| 2004–2005 | Summerland | Kyle Bale | 2 episodes |
| 2005 | Crimson Force | Captain Baskin | Television film |
| 2005 | Ordinary Miracles | Jim Powell | Television film |
| 2005 | The Poseidon Adventure | Doctor Matthew Ballard | Television film |
| 2005 | ER | Vincent Janeson | Episode: "The Human Shield" |
| 2006 | 24 | Barry Landes | 2 episodes |
| 2008 | Celebracadabra | Himself | Contestant |
| 2008 | Xenophobia | Stone | Television film |
| 2008 | A Gunfighter's Pledge | Horn | Television film |
| 2009, 2013, 2020 | Criminal Minds | George Foyet / The Boston Reaper | 6 episodes |
| 2009–2013 | Southland | Bill "Dewey" Dudek | 27 episodes |
| 2010 | Psych | Agent Camden Driggs | Episode: "One, Maybe Two, Ways Out" |
| 2011 | The Glades | Peyton Robinson | Episode: "Second Skin" |
| 2011 | Torchwood: Miracle Day | The Gentleman | Episode: "Escape to L.A." |
| 2011 | CHAOS | Carson Simms | Episode: "Proof of Life" |
| 2011 | Camel Spiders | Sheriff Beaumont | Television film |
| 2012 | Alphas | Eli Aquino | Episode: "The Quick and the Dead" |
| 2012 | Revolution | Bounty Hunter | Episode: "Chained Heat" |
| 2012 | Castle | John Campbell | Episode: "Swan Song" |
| 2012 | Longmire | Ray Stewart | Episode: "A Damn Shame" |
| 2012 | Hawaii Five-0 | Martin Cordova | Episode: "Death Wish" |
| 2012 | Home Invasion | Ray | Television film |
| 2013 | Horror Haiku | John Asher | Episode: "I Know What You Know" |
| 2013 | Sons of Anarchy | Agent Frank Eagan | Episode: "One One Six" |
| 2013 | Blue Bloods | Alex Polanski | Episode: "Justice Served" |
| 2013 | An Amish Murder | Nathan Detrick | Television film |
| 2013 | Christmas Belle | Rex Everhart | Television film |
| 2014 | Grimm | Agent Weston Steward | 5 episodes |
| 2014 | Category 5 | Charlie DuPuis | Television film |
| 2014–2015 | Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce | Nate | 4 episodes |
| 2015–2017 | Stitchers | Daniel Stinger | 7 episodes |
| 2015 | Motive | Joe Hillis | Episode: "Reversal of Fortune" |
| 2015 | Stitchers | Daniel Stinger | 3 episodes |
| 2015 | Ties That Bind | Mr. Witherspoon | Episode: "Controlled Substance" |
| 2015 | Sleepy Hollow | Agent Mick Granger | Episode: "I, Witness" |
| 2016, 2018 | Animal Kingdom | Paul Belmont | 9 episodes |
| 2016 | Advance & Retreat | Nathan Shapiro | Television film |
| 2017 | Ray Donovan | Dr. Brogan | 4 episodes |
| 2017 | Outcast | Simon Barnes | 3 episodes |
| 2017, 2019 | SEAL Team | Ash Spenser | 3 episodes |
| 2017 | The Punisher | Carson Wolf | 3 episodes |
| 2018 | The Blacklist | Earl Fagen | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | MacGyver | Vasil | Episode: "Guts + Fuel + Hope" |
| 2018 | Dynasty | Max Van Kirk | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | The Good Cop | Chuck Everett | Episode: "Why Kill A Busboy?" |
| 2018 | The Walking Dead | Hilltop Messenger | Episode: "Stradivarius" |
| 2019 | Bosch | Louis Degner | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | The Terror | Major Bowen | (Season 2) 4 episodes |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Injustice 2 | Leonard Snart / Captain Cold |
| 2018 | Lego DC Super-Villains | Eobard Thawne / Reverse-Flash |
References
- ^ "C. Thomas Howell". AllMovie. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
- ^ a b aboutct Archived 2008-07-24 at the Wayback Machine. Cthomashowell.net; retrieved 2011-12-03.
- ^ Tommy Howell: I'm Just a Normal Kid! Archived 2012-07-22 at the Wayback Machine. Cthowell.net. Retrieved on 2011-12-03.
- ^ Marriage Archived 2012-07-22 at the Wayback Machine. Cthowell.net. Retrieved on 2011-12-03.
- ^ Cooking Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine. Cthowell.net. Retrieved on 2011-12-03.
- ^ https://www.vulture.com/amp/2012/09/the-lost-roles-of-back-to-the-future.html
- ^ "Rotten Tomatoes: Soul Man (1986)".
- ^ Harris, Will. "C. Thomas Howell on The Outsiders, blackface, and how Marlboros got him cast in E.T." The Onion AV Club. The Onion AV Club. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
- ^ Interview for the Poseidon Adventure Remake, Cthomashowell.net; retrieved 2011-12-03.
- ^ Franich, Darren (January 10, 2011). "'Spider-Man': C. Thomas Howell joins the reboot". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
- ^ Two Marriages Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine. cthowell.net
- ^ Torchwood: Miracle Day casting news. Den of Geek; retrieved 2011-12-03.
