C. Thomas Howell Bio
Christopher Thomas Howell, known professionally as C. Thomas Howell, is an American actor, director, and musician who has maintained a steady presence in Hollywood for more than four decades. Born on December 7, 1966, in Los Angeles, California, he first drew attention as a teenager when he appeared in Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and then earned stardom as Ponyboy Curtis in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Outsiders (1983). He later built a versatile career across film and television, taking on leading roles in dramas, thrillers, and action pictures while also stepping behind the camera to direct.
Howell’s filmography spans acclaimed ensemble dramas, cult horror, historical epics, and family entertainment. He is equally recognized for his work on the small screen, including long-running parts in series such as Southland and Stitchers. In the 2020s, Howell expanded into music under the name Tommy Howell, releasing singles and the album American Storyteller. His range as a performer and creator has helped him remain active across genres and generations.
Early Life and Background
Christopher Thomas Howell was born in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, to Christopher N. and Candice Howell. He grew up alongside three siblings in a household shaped by the entertainment industry. His father, Christopher N. Howell, worked as a stunt coordinator and rodeo performer, and he played the role of the Red Knight in Terry Gilliam’s The Fisher King. That family background gave young Christopher direct exposure to the craft of film production from a very early age.
As a child, Howell aspired to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a stuntman. He worked as a child stunt performer and also trained as a rodeo star, developing a comfort with physical performance that would later serve his acting career. His parents eventually divorced during his youth, an experience that shaped his teenage years as he balanced school with auditions and small on-set jobs.
Howell graduated from Saugus High School in 1984. Even before finishing high school, he had already begun working in television on the situation comedy The Brian Keith Show and had appeared in commercials. These early experiences gave him a working knowledge of the industry and prepared him for the major film roles that followed in the early 1980s.
Path to Acting
Howell’s entry into film came through his family’s industry connections and his own early talent. After small parts in television, he landed a supporting role as Tyler in Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in 1982, a film that became one of the most beloved science fiction movies of its era. Working on a set led by Spielberg provided an important education in big-screen storytelling.
At the age of fifteen, Howell was cast in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 adaptation of S. E. Hinton’s novel The Outsiders, taking on the lead role of Ponyboy Curtis. The coming-of-age drama went on to become a cult classic and introduced audiences to a deep ensemble cast that included Tom Cruise, Matt Dillon, Emilio Estevez, Ralph Macchio, Rob Lowe, Matt Dillon, Diane Lane, and Patrick Swayze. His performance as Ponyboy earned him a Young Artist Award and established him as one of the most promising young actors of his generation.
C. Thomas Howell Career
Early Career (1980s)
Howell’s first notable film work came in 1982 with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, followed the next year by The Outsiders, which served as his breakout. In 1984, he reunited with Outsiders co-star Patrick Swayze for both Grandview, U.S.A. and Red Dawn, and also starred in Tank. In 1985, he appeared in the romantic comedy Secret Admirer, and he co-starred in the short-lived television series Two Marriages, which was revived after a letter-writing campaign by fans.
He was reportedly one of two final actors considered for the lead role of Marty McFly in Back to the Future before Michael J. Fox was cast. In 1986, Howell starred in the cult horror film The Hitcher and the satire Soul Man. While Soul Man was a commercial hit, the choice of blackface makeup sparked lasting controversy and limited his prospects as a leading man in major studio films. He closed the decade with Franco Zeffirelli’s 1988 drama Young Toscanini, in which he played a young Arturo Toscanini.
Breakthrough and Continued Success (1990s and 2000s)
In the 1990s, Howell starred in the romantic drama That Night (1992) with Juliette Lewis, the thriller Acting on Impulse, and the historical epic Gettysburg (1993), a film that became a favorite of history classrooms. He portrayed the gangster Baby Face Nelson in the 1995 biographical film Baby Face Nelson, and he made his directorial debut with the 1996 direct-to-video release Pure Danger. On television, he took on main roles as Detective Frank Kohanek on the Fox horror series Kindred: The Embraced (1996) and Dr. Alex Kennedy on the syndicated adventure series Amazon (1999–2000).
During the 2000s, Howell continued to work across formats, starring in films such as Gods and Generals (2003) and Hidalgo (2004). He also became a frequent collaborator with the production company The Asylum, appearing in and directing several straight-to-DVD projects, including H. G. Wells’ War of the Worlds (2005) and the sequel War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave (2008). Beginning in 2009, he took on the recurring role of Officer Bill “Dewey” Dudek, a police officer recovering from alcoholism, on the L.A. police drama Southland.
Notable Works and Milestones
Howell’s signature work remains his portrayal of Ponyboy Curtis in The Outsiders, a performance that earned him a Young Artist Award and helped define a wave of young adult dramas in the 1980s. His later roles in The Hitcher and Gettysburg reinforced his reputation for taking on intense, character-driven projects. As a director, his work on War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave and The Day the Earth Stopped showed his growing interest in science fiction and genre storytelling.
C. Thomas Howell Award Nominations
Verified records of formal award nominations for C. Thomas Howell are limited. Beyond the recognition he received for his early work, including a Young Artist Award for The Outsiders, comprehensive details on additional nominations are not available in the reviewed sources.
C. Thomas Howell Awards Won
Howell earned a Young Artist Award for his performance as Ponyboy Curtis in The Outsiders (1983), one of the defining honors of his early career. Records on additional competitive awards are not well documented in the available sources, and only this verified win is included here.
C. Thomas Howell Family
C. Thomas Howell was born to Christopher N. and Candice Howell and grew up with three siblings. His father, Christopher N. Howell, worked as a stunt coordinator and rodeo performer, including a role as the Red Knight in Terry Gilliam’s The Fisher King. Howell’s parents divorced when he was young, an experience that shaped his teenage years as he balanced school with early acting work.
Personal Life
Howell dated actress Kyle Richards in the 1980s. He married actress Rae Dawn Chong in 1989 after meeting her on the set of Soul Man (1986), and the couple divorced the following year. He then married Sylvie Anderson in 1992, and together they had three children before Anderson filed for divorce in 2016. In November 2001, Howell was acquitted of misdemeanor charges, including hit and run and brandishing a weapon, arising from a confrontation with a skateboarder in Southern California.