Francis Ford Coppola’s coming-of-age movie The Outsiders was released in 1983. The film tells the story of adolescent gangs, the Greasers and the Socials, in rural Oklahoma, who are always in conflict. Greasers Ponyboy (C. Thomas Howell) and Johnny (Ralph Macchio) are forced to flee when a fight results in the death of a Socials member. Ponyboy and Johnny will soon have to deal with the repercussions of their violent lives, along with the intense Dallas (Matt Dillon) and his other Greaser friends. While some Greasers attempt to change, others suffer disastrous outcomes.
The movie is an adaptation of S. E. Hinton’s 1967 novel of the same name. The Outsiders film earned about $33 million at the box office with mainly favorable reviews. Since its release, it has developed a cult following over the years, which even includes a museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has been more than 40 years since The Outsiders made their debut as of the date of this article. Let’s see what the cast is currently doing.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
C. Thomas Howell
Devilworks Studios
C. Thomas Howell portrayed the lead character Ponyboy Curtis in The Outsiders. He since went on to star in a number of films, including Soul Man, The Hitcher, Grandview U.S.A., Red Dawn, and Secret Admirer. In 2013 and 2018, respectively, he voiced Eobard Thawne / Professor Zoom in the animated Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox and Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay. More recently, Howell portrayed Cpt. Browning in Dauntless: The Battle of Midway, Blake in Rich Boy, Rich Girl, and Breen Nash in Beast Mode. In 2023, the actor is set to play Caspar Weinberger in Reagan alongside Dennis Quaid and David Henrie (who are both portraying United States President Ronald Reagan).
Matt Dillon
Trust Nordisk
After starring in The Outsiders and two other films based on Hinton’s works, Tex and Rumble Fish, Matt Dillon went on to play various characters in films like Singles, Beautiful Girls, There’s Something About Mary, and Wild Things. He was listed with Sean Penn as the top actor in his age group by film critic Roger Ebert in a 1991 article. In the 2000s, Dillon had roles in the films Crash (for which he was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award), You, Me and Dupree, and The House That Jack Built. In 2015, he starred in the first season of the Fox television series Wayward Pines, for which he was nominated for a Saturn Award. Dillon has had a busy few years as three of his films, Land of Dreams (2021), American Dreamer (2022), and Asteroid City (2023), are being released one right after another.
Ralph Macchio
Netflix
Ralph Macchio is probably best known for playing Daniel LaRusso in three Karate Kid films. Besides his role as Johnny Cade in The Outsiders, Macchio went on to take the parts of Jeremy Andretti in Eight Is Enough, Bill Gambini in My Cousin Vinny, Eugene Martone in Crossroads, Archie Rodriguez in Ugly Betty, and Officer Haddix in The Deuce. Most recently, Macchio has resumed his role as Daniel LaRusso in Cobra Kai, a Netflix sequel series to the Karate Kid films, which is hopefully getting a Season 6 very soon.
Patrick Swayze
Paramount Pictures
Patrick Swayze played Darrel “Darry” Curtis in The Outsiders, but he is probably most recognized for his roles in films like Dirty Dancing, Ghost, Road House, and Point Break. In the 2000s, Swayze portrayed Jim Cunningham in Donnie Darko, a Dance Class Instructor in Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (a spinoff of the original movie), and the voice of Cash in the animated movie The Fox and the Hound 2. Swayze’s final acting role was released in 2009 (filmed in 2007) when he played Velvet Larry in Powder Blue. Sadly, the actor passed away that same year following a battle with pancreatic cancer at the age of 57. Fans flocked to social media in 2022, on what would have been Swayze’s 70th birthday to honor the late actor.
Rob Lowe
Warner Bros.
At the age of 15, Rob Lowe made his acting debut in the brief-lived comedy A New Kind of Family. Later, in The Outsiders, he played Sodapop Curtis. Following that part, Lowe appeared in movies including Square Dance, About Last Night, St. Elmo’s Fire, and Oxford Blues. He was cast in the political drama The West Wing in 1999, for which he was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award. In television series like Brothers & Sisters, Parks and Recreation, and Code Black, Lowe brought to life a range of characters. He most recently played Owen Strand in 9-1-1: Lone Star, which Variety reports has been renewed for a fourth season.
Emilio Estevez
Disney Platform Distribution
Emilio Estevez began his career as an actor in films of the 1980s like The Breakfast Club, St. Elmo’s Fire, and The Outsiders. Additionally, he is well-known for Bobby (which he also wrote and directed), Repo Man, The Mighty Ducks franchise, Stakeout, Another Stakeout, Maximum Overdrive, and his roles in Westerns like Young Guns and Young Guns II. Estevez’s most recent acting role was in The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, a Netflix sequel to the movie series. A Young Guns III movie may be in the works, but there is no information on a potential release date as yet, claims Collider.
Tom Cruise
Those who haven’t heard of Tom Cruise may have been living under a rock for a long time. He is one of the highest-paid actors in the world and has won several awards. Cruise acted in movies including Risky Business, Top Gun, The Color of Money, and Rain Man in the 1980s. He began accepting roles in films including A Few Good Men, The Firm, Interview with the Vampire, and Jerry Maguire in the 1990s. Cruise appeared in movies including Vanilla Sky, The Last Samurai, War of the Worlds, Jack Reacher, and Edge of Tomorrow in the 2000s. Despite all of his accomplishments, Cruise is still best recognized for his portrayal of Ethan Hunt in the Mission: Impossible movies from 1999 to the present. Cruise most recently appeared in the much-anticipated sequel Top Gun: Maverick. His forthcoming movies include the next two installments of the Mission: Impossible series, which will be released in 2023 and 2024.
