C. Thomas Howell: What Ever Happened to the Outsiders Star?

He was 11 years old when he reported for duty on the set of E.T., and he never really left the spotlight. C. Thomas Howell went from extra to teen idol almost overnight when he landed the role of Ponyboy Curtis in The Outsiders (1983), becoming one of the most recognizable young faces in Hollywood. Decades later, he’s still working—now as both actor and musician—navigating the kind of career that doesn’t follow the usual Hollywood script.

Born: December 7, 1966 · Age: 59 · Known For: The Outsiders (1983) · Professions: Actor, Director, Musician · Recent Base: Nashville, TN

What ever happened to C. Thomas Howell?

C. Thomas Howell never really went away—he just stopped being a household name. After his teen-idol peak in the mid-1980s, he continued working steadily through the 1990s, 2000s, and beyond, taking on roles in television and film that kept him visible without recapturing the fame of his Outsiders days.

Post-Outsiders roles

Following The Outsiders, Howell appeared in a string of notable 1980s films: Tank (1984), Grandview, U.S.A. (1984), Red Dawn (1984), Secret Admirer (1985), and The Hitcher (1986). Then came Soul Man (1986), which was commercially successful but sparked controversy for its premise—and reportedly damaged his standing as a leading man in Hollywood, according to Wikipedia.

The 1990s and 2000s saw Howell transition into character roles and television work. He appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) and voiced characters in several DC animated films, including Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (2013) and Justice League: Gods and Monsters (2015).

Directing and music shift

In the 2020s, Howell pivoted toward music under the stage name Tommy Howell. He released three singles in 2022—”Rose Hill,” “Whiskey Demon,” and “Ponygirl”—before issuing his debut full-length album American Storyteller in 2023, according to Wikipedia.

Recent acting credits include a main role as Hagerty in the Netflix series Obliterated (2023) and a portrayal of Caspar Weinberger in the biographical film Reagan (2024), per Wikipedia. He currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

What is C. Thomas Howell best known for?

C. Thomas Howell is best known for his role as Ponyboy Curtis in Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s novel The Outsiders. The film, released in 1983, featured an ensemble cast that included Tom Cruise, Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Emilio Estevez, and Diane Lane—all of them on the verge of major stardom.

The Outsiders (1983)

Howell’s Ponyboy became an iconic teen character precisely because the role required vulnerability rather than bravado. He earned the part over hundreds of auditions, stepping in when the originally cast actor—a Mormon teenager—dropped out after learning the character smoked cigarettes, according to Remind Magazine.

The film grossed over $46 million domestically and cemented Howell as a rising star, though his subsequent leading-man career never quite reached those heights.

Early film debut

Howell was just 11 years old when he appeared in Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), making it his official film debut. His father, a stuntman and cowboy, helped establish connections in the entertainment industry that led to the early opportunity, per Remind Magazine.

What are the allegations against Thomas Howell?

The most documented legal matter involving C. Thomas Howell occurred on December 9, 2000, when prosecutors say he struck a 20-year-old skateboarder with his pickup truck in Reseda, California, fled the scene, and returned with a hammer to threaten the man, according to the Los Angeles Times. Howell was charged with five misdemeanor counts including hit and run and brandishing a weapon.

Specific claims

At 34 years old, Howell faced potential sentencing of more than four years in County Jail if convicted. The confrontation occurred in Southern California, and the charges stemmed directly from the December 2000 incident, per the Los Angeles Times.

Public response

A jury acquitted Howell of all five misdemeanor counts in November 2001, determining that no crime had been committed. The Los Angeles Times reported at the time that the jury deliberated briefly before delivering the not-guilty verdicts.

How long did Kyle Richards and C. Thomas Howell date?

C. Thomas Howell dated actress Kyle Richards during the 1980s, according to Wikipedia. Both were rising stars in Hollywood at the time—Richards had already appeared in several films and television shows as a child actress before transitioning to adult roles.

Timeline of romance

The exact duration of their relationship isn’t widely documented in major sources. Both were young and building careers when they dated, with Richards eventually marrying and becoming best known for her reality television career on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

Post-breakup context

After his relationship with Richards ended, Howell married actress Rae Dawn Chong in 1989. The two had met while co-starring in Soul Man (1986), according to Wikipedia. Their marriage lasted only one year before they divorced in 1990.

Is C. Thomas Howell still married?

C. Thomas Howell is not currently married. His second wife, Sylvie Anderson, filed for divorce from him in 2016, according to Wikipedia. The couple had been married since 1992 and had three children together before the separation.

Marriage history

Howell has been married twice. His first marriage to Rae Dawn Chong lasted from 1989 to 1990—a brief union that ended after just one year. His second marriage to Sylvie Anderson spanned 1992 to 2016, producing three children and lasting significantly longer, per Wikipedia.

Family details

Little has been publicly disclosed about Howell’s children or his relationship with them following the divorce filing. Anderson’s social media presence suggests the family has had to navigate the split privately despite Howell’s continued public profile.

Howell’s career has survived shifts that would have ended most others: the end of his teen-idol window, a high-profile legal battle, and the general churn of Hollywood fashion. He’s navigated it by staying working and recently by expanding into music—a pivot that keeps his name circulating without depending on the film industry alone. Whether fans see this as reinvention or just stubbornness probably depends on how much they remember The Outsiders.

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Now 59 and Nashville-based, Howell balances acting, directing, and music amid personal chapters explored in his biography and recent roles across four decades in entertainment.

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