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Carl McDowell

Carl McDowell

Actor · Born May 27, 1977 (49) · Chicago, Illinois, USA

Carl D. McDowell was born on the gang-ridden streets of the south side of Chicago, but sports ultimately lead him in the opposite direction. Excelling in football, baseball, and wrestling at Harper High School, it was football that got him a ticket out of Chicago and ultimately into acting. Excessive absences from theater class in college led him to the stage and to taking a mandatory role in Of Mice and Men. Bitten by the acting bug and sidelined by injury he made the move to Hollywood, and while working as a production assistant started performing stand-up. With some stand-up success he landed a few auditions, and the rest they say is history.

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Biography from IMDb.

Born
May 27, 1977 (49)
From
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Works as
Actor
Titles
17 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 157 days to Oct 28Up 42% in 30 days

What are Carl McDowell's films like?

Across their 5 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
47%
Self
28%
Survival
12%
Society
8%
Ideas
4%
Family bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 4 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 2 · Serious 1 · Dark 1

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 4 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0

Gentle: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their gentle movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 3 · Charged 0 · Intense 1

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 3 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 1

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 4 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

1 analyzed role

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Hopeful
4
Warm
2
Bittersweet
2
Melancholic
1
Contemplative
1
Other
3

How their films linger

Hopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet3

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 Carl McDowell's films?

As of October 24, 2026, all 17 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (6).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Carl McDowell's 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

22 credits, 17 with a MovieCove page.

  • Way of the Warrior Kid (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Actor

  • #WorstChristmasEver(2025)

    Actor

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films

  • Family Switch(2023)

    as Repairman Zach

    Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all films

  • Bobcat Moretti(2022)

    as Clarence

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • Roll with It(2023)

    as Jaxson Wilson

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • Frankie Meets Jack(2023)

    as Boner

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films

  • Holidate(2020)

    as Scruffy Santa

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • The Babysitter: Killer Queen(2020)

    as Dr. Big Carl McManus

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • Taboo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    as Justin Chambers

  • Rim of the World(2019)

    as Carl

    Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films

  • I'd Like to Be Alone Now(2019)

    as Tony

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • The Babysitter(2017)

    as School Nurse

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • Rush Hour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Show 1 episode · as Toolbelt

  • Ballers(2015)

    Show 35 episodes · as TTD

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all shows

  • Togetherness(2015)

    Show 1 episode · as Messenger

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • Scorpion(2014)

    Show 1 episode · as Grungy Criminal

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows

  • Ringer (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Homeless Man

  • Mr. Sunshine(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Trevon

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all shows

  • Shameless(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Ricky

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows

  • Nothing Special (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    as SqueegeeMan / Homeless Guy

  • The League(2009)

    Show 1 episode · as Homeless Man #2

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • Sons of Anarchy(2008)

    Show 1 episode · as Vandross

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows

Career shape

Star power in the 84th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 22 titles, 21 of them dated from 2008 to 2025; peak year 2019.

Biggest box office

Roll with It (2023)

$758K worldwide

Highest rated

Ballers (2015)

Midcredits 78th

Film career

20082025

Peak 2019 · steadily prominent in film for years. 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
Acting22 of 22: 22 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score53rd

By decade

2000s2 · acting2010s11 · acting2020s8 · acting

Billing

usually 17th · top billed in 0% of 5 roles

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.

How do Carl McDowell's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 41st percentile, the median of all 10; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 26th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

26thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Approval · how many liked their films

70thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Reach · how many have seen their films

41stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Midcredits score across 17 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th6
  • 25th to 49th5
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 17 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Divisive2
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser5
  • Mixed5

Most divisive · actor

#WorstChristmasEver (2025)

97th percentile spread · 46% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Ballers (2015)

Midcredits 78th · 89% liked

Reviewers score the acting 45/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles; fans 80, detractors 18. 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.

Who does Carl McDowell work with?

People who share at least 2 of Carl McDowell's MovieCove titles; Mindy Sterling shares the most, 2.