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Chill Wills

Chill Wills

Actor · Died December 15, 1978, aged 76 · Seagoville, Texas, USA

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Chill Theodore Wills (July 18, 1902 – December 15, 1978) was an American film actor, and a singer in the Avalon Boys Quartet. He was a performer from early childhood, forming and leading the Avalon Boys singing group in the 1930s. After appearing in a few westerns he disbanded the group in 1938, and struck out on a solo acting career. One of his more memorable roles was that of the distinctive voice of Francis the Mule in a series of popular films. Wills' deep, rough voice, with its Western twang, was matched to the personality of the cynical, sardonic mule. As was customary at the time, Wills was given no billing for his vocal work, though he was featured prominently on-screen as blustery General Ben Kaye in the fourth entry, Francis Joins the WACS. He provided the deep voice for Stan Laurel's performance of "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine" in Way Out West (1937), in which the Avalon Boys Quartet appeared. Wills was cast in numerous serious film roles, including as "the city of Chicago" as personified by a phantom police sergeant in the film noir City That Never Sleeps (1953), and that of Uncle Bawley in Giant (1956), which also features Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. Wills was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for his role as Davy Crockett's companion "Beekeeper" in the film The Alamo (1960). However, his aggressive campaign for the award was considered tasteless by many, including the film's star/director/producer John Wayne, who publicly apologized for Wills. Wills' publicity agent, W.S. "Bow-Wow" Wojciechowicz, accepted blame for the ill-advised effort, claiming that Wills had known nothing about it. The Oscar was instead won by Peter Ustinov for his role as Lentulus Batiatus in Spartacus. In Rory Calhoun's CBS western series The Texan, Wills appeared in the lead role in the 1960 episode entitled "The Eyes of Captain Wylie". Wills starred in the short-run series Frontier Circus which aired for only one season (1961–62) on CBS. In 1966, he was cast in the role of a shady Texas rancher, Jim Ed Love, in the short-lived ABC comedy/western series The Rounders (reprising his role in the 1965 film The Rounders, starring Henry Fonda), with co-stars Ron Hayes, Patrick Wayne and Walker Edmiston. in 1963-64, Wills joined William Lundigan, Walter Brennan and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in making appearances on behalf of U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater, the Republican nominee in the campaign against U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson. In 1968, Wills refused to support Richard Nixon for the presidency and served as master of ceremonies for George C. Wallace, former governor of Alabama, for the California campaign stops in Wallace's presidential campaign.[5] Wills was among the few Hollywood celebrities to endorse Wallace's bid against Nixon and Hubert H. Humphrey; another was Walter Brennan. Also in 1968, he starred in the Gunsmoke episode "A Noose for Dobie Price", where he played Elihu Gorman, a former outlaw who joins forces with Marshal Matt Dillon, played by James Arness, to track down a member of his former gang who has escaped jail. His last role was in 1978, as a janitor in Stubby Pringle's Christmas. CLR Description above from the Wikipedia article Chill Wills, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 18, 1902
Died
December 15, 1978 (aged 76)
From
Seagoville, Texas, USA
Works as
Actor
Titles
73 on MovieCove · 125 credits in all
TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Up 58% in 30 days

What are Chill Wills' films like?

Across their 54 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.

What they feel like to watch

their average across 54 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category

Light 29 · Serious 18 · Dark 7

A split, not a type: Grounded 30 · Stylized 21 · Heightened 3

Gentle 17 · Charged 31 · Intense 6

Steady 28 · Shifting 26 · Whiplash 0

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 23 · Some laughs 20 · Funny 11

Slow burn 22 · Even-paced 28 · Relentless 4

Casual 37 · Engaged 17 · Full focus 0

Resolved 45 · Open-ended 7 · Ambiguous 2

Roles they play

29 analyzed roles

Usually the Ally: 13 of 29 analyzed roles.

Ally
13 of 29
Mentor
7 of 29
Trickster
6 of 29
Threshold guardian
2 of 29
Hero
1 of 29
Show the 29 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
30
Warm
18
Thrilling
16
Melancholic
18
Joyful
11
Other
47

How their films end · 6 with a twist

  • Happy29
  • Bittersweet17
  • Tragic5
  • Ambiguous2
  • Other1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Chill Wills' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 28 of their 73 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (22).

Subscription and free streaming for Chill Wills' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

125 credits, 73 with a MovieCove page; 5 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
  • That's Entertainment! III(1994)

    as (archive footage) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
  • John Wayne's 'The Alamo' (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    as Beekeeper

  • Stubby Pringle's Christmas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    as The Janitor

  • Poco… Little Dog Lost (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    as Big Burt

  • Mr. Billion(1977)

    as Col. Clayton T. Winkle

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films
  • Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
  • Guns of a Stranger(1973)

    as Tom Duncan

    Midcredits score: 4th percentile of all films
  • The Steagle(1971)

    as Tall Guy McCoy

    Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all films
  • Alias Smith and Jones (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Night Gallery(1969)

    Show 1 episode · as Heppelwhite (segment "The Little Black Bag")

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all shows
  • The Over-the-Hill Gang Rides Again(1970)

    as Gentleman George Agnew

    Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films
  • Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films
  • The Over-the-Hill Gang(1969)

    as Gentleman George Agnew

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films
  • Big Daddy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    Actor

  • Judd, for the Defense (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Tarzan (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • The Rounders (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Show 18 episodes · Actor

  • Fireball 500(1966)

    as Big Jaw

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films
  • The Rounders(1965)

    as Jim Ed Love

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
  • The Cardinal(1963)

    as Monsignor

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
  • The Wheeler Dealers(1963)

    as Jay Ray Spinelby

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films
  • McLintock!(1963)

    as Drago

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films
  • Burke's Law (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

    Show 1 episode · as General Hector Harder · as Harry Riggs · as Stanton Custer

  • Young Guns of Texas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    as Preacher Sam Shelby

  • Frontier Circus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Show 26 episodes · as Colonel Casey Thompson /Col. Casey Thompson

  • Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films
  • Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films
  • Gold of the Seven Saints(1961)

    as Doc Wilson Gates, M.D.

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films
  • Where the Boys Are(1960)

    as Police Captain

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
  • The Alamo(1960)

    as Beekeeper

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
  • Route 66(1960)

    Show 2 episodes · Actor

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows
  • The Sad Horse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    as Capt. Connors

  • Rawhide (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)

    Show 2 episodes · as Sheriff Asa Tanner

  • The Texan(1958)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows
  • From Hell to Texas(1958)

    as Amos Bradley

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
  • Trackdown (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1957)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Gun Glory(1957)

    as Preacher

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films
  • Gun for a Coward(1956)

    as Loving

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all films
  • Giant(1956)

    as Uncle Bawley

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
  • New York Premiere Telecast 'Giant' (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1956)

    as Host

  • Santiago(1956)

    as Captain 'Sidewheel' Jones

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films
  • Kentucky Rifle(1955)

    as Tobias Taylor

    Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all films
  • Alfred Hitchcock Presents(1955)

    Show 1 episode · as Mr. Kilmer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows
  • Gunsmoke (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Show 1 episode · as Abe Blocker · as Elihu Gorman · as Red Conniston

  • Francis in the Navy(1955)

    as Francis (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films
  • Timberjack (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    as Steve Riika

  • Hell's Outpost (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    as Kevin Russell

  • Ricochet Romance (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

    as Tom Williams

  • Francis Joins the WACS(1954)

    as Francis (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films
  • Tumbleweed(1953)

    as Sheriff Murchoree

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
  • The Man from the Alamo(1953)

    as John Gage

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
  • City That Never Sleeps(1953)

    as Sgt. Joe, the 'Voice of Chicago'

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
  • Francis Covers the Big Town(1953)

    as Francis (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
  • Small Town Girl(1953)

    as Happy

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
  • Ride the Man Down(1952)

    as Ike Adams

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films
  • Francis Goes to West Point(1952)

    as Francis (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
  • Bronco Buster (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)

    as Dan Bream

  • Hallmark Hall of Fame (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)

    Show 1 episode · as The Janitor

  • The Sea Hornet (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)

    as Swede

  • Cattle Drive(1951)

    as Dallas

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films
  • Francis Goes to the Races(1951)

    as Francis (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
  • Oh! Susanna (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)

    as Sgt. Barhydt

  • Rio Grande(1950)

    as Dr. Wilkins

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
  • High Lonesome(1950)

    as Boatwhistle

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films
  • Stella (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    as Chief Clark

  • Rock Island Trail(1950)

    as Hogger McCoy

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films
  • Francis(1950)

    as Francis the Talking Mule (voice)

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films
  • The Sundowners(1950)

    as Sam Beers

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films
  • The Grass Is Always Greener (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    as Windy

  • Red Canyon(1949)

    as Marshal G.T. Brackton

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films
  • Tulsa(1949)

    as Pinky Jimpson (Narrator)

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films
  • Loaded Pistols(1948)

    as Sheriff Cramer

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
  • Family Honeymoon(1948)

    as Fred

    Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films
  • That Wonderful Urge(1948)

    as Homer Beggs

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
  • The Saxon Charm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1948)

    as Captain Chatham

  • Northwest Stampede (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1948)

    as Mileaway

  • The Sainted Sisters (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1948)

    as Will Twitchell

  • Heartaches(1947)

    as 'Breezie' Mann

    Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films
  • High Barbaree(1947)

    as Lars (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films
  • The Yearling(1946)

    as Buck Forrester

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
  • Gallant Bess (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1946)

    as Chief Petty Officer

  • The Harvey Girls(1946)

    as H.H. Hartsey

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films
  • Leave Her to Heaven(1945)

    as Leick Thome

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
  • Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films
  • I'll Be Seeing You(1944)

    as Swanson

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films
  • Sunday Dinner for a Soldier (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    as Mr. York

  • Meet Me in St. Louis(1944)

    as Mr. Neely

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
  • Barbary Coast Gent (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    as Sheriff Hightower

  • The Immortal Blacksmith (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    as Tom Davenport

  • See Here, Private Hargrove(1944)

    as First Sgt. Cramp

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
  • Best Foot Forward(1943)

    as Chester Short

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films
  • A Stranger in Town(1943)

    as Charles Craig

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films
  • Stand by for Action(1942)

    as Mate Jenks, Chef-Bootsmann

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
  • Apache Trail (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as 'Pike' Skelton

  • The Omaha Trail (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as Henry Hawkins

  • Her Cardboard Lover (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as Judge

  • Mr. Gardenia Jones (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as Hotel Employee

  • Tarzan's New York Adventure(1942)

    as Manchester Montford

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
  • The Bugle Sounds (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    as Sgt. Larry Dillon

  • Honky Tonk(1941)

    as The Sniper

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films
  • Belle Starr(1941)

    as Blue Duck

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all films
  • Billy the Kid(1941)

    as Tom Patterson

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films
  • The Bad Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1941)

    as 'Red' Giddings

  • Western Union(1941)

    as Homer Kettle

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films
  • Tugboat Annie Sails Again (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    as Shiftless

  • Sky Murder (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    as Sheriff Beckwith

  • The Westerner(1940)

    as Southeast

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
  • Wyoming (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    as Lafe

  • Boom Town(1940)

    as Harmony Jones

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films
  • Allegheny Uprising(1939)

    as M'Cammon

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films
  • The Day the Bookies Wept(1939)

    as Man on Bus (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films
  • Timber Stampede (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Whopper Hatch

  • Racketeers of the Range (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Whopper Hatch

  • Sorority House (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Mr. Johnson

  • Trouble in Sundown (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Whopper

  • Arizona Legion (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Whopper Hatch

  • Lawless Valley (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1938)

    as Deputy Speedy McGow

  • Nobody's Baby(1937)

    as Amateur Hour Quartet Singer

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films
  • Way Out West(1937)

    as Lead Singer of the Avalon Boys / Stan's Bass Singing (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
  • Hideaway Girl (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    as Lead Singer of Avalon Boys

  • At Sea Ashore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    as Leader of The Avalon Four (uncredited)

  • Call of the Prairie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    as Singing Cowhand

  • Anything Goes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    as Quartette Member

  • Bar 20 Rides Again (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    as Henchman

Career shape

Star power in the 97th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 125 titles from 1935 to 2001; peak year 1960.

Film career

19352001

Peak 1960 · fewer prominent film roles lately. Top draw in 4 MovieCove titles. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting125 of 125: 125 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score56th

By decade

1930s15 · acting1940s40 · acting1950s38 · acting1960s19 · acting1970s10 · acting1990s2 · acting2000s1 · acting

Billing

usually 7th · top billed in 0% of 29 roles
37424757

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

How do Chill Wills' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 54th percentile, the median of all 69; across their 54 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 58th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

58thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 54

Approval · how many liked their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 54

Reach · how many have seen their films

46thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 54

Midcredits score across 73 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up17
  • 50th to 74th26
  • 25th to 49th20
  • Below 25th10

Shape of the crowd

42 of their 73 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved6
  • Universally Panned2
  • Crowd Pleaser42
  • Broadly Agreed12
  • Mixed11

Reviewers score the acting 66/100 in their films, across 54 reviewed titles; fans 74, detractors 46. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Chill Wills' work okay for kids?

Across up to 8 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, sex & nudity and profanity run lighter than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore6 titles18–63 · median 31 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity8 titles13–54 · median 17 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity6 titles6–39 · median 19 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs6 titles35–50 · median 42 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense7 titles10–60 · median 33 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Chill Wills work with?

People who share at least 2 of Chill Wills' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Frank Skinner shares the most, 6.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers and cinematographers

Producers