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Reginald VelJohnson (born August 16, 1952, in Queens, New York) is an American actor best known for playing Sergeant Al Powell in the Die Hard film series and Carl Winslow in the long-running ABC/CBS sitcom Family Matters.1 In Ghostbusters (1984), he appears in a brief but memorable scene as the Jail Guard who releases the Ghostbusters from their holding cell.2
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VelJohnson was born Reginald Johnson in Queens, New York. His mother, Eva, worked as a nurse's aide and his father, Dan, was a hospital attendant. His father left the family when Reginald was 13, and his mother later remarried.1 He attended Benjamin N. Cardozo High School and went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theater from New York University. While at NYU, he worked with Joseph Papp's Black/Hispanic Shakespeare Company alongside future stars Morgan Freeman and CCH Pounder.1
Early in his career he dropped the space from his last name, becoming Reginald VelJohnson rather than Reginald Vel Johnson. As he later explained, he made the change "because I wanted a name people would remember."1
VelJohnson made his feature film debut in the 1981 horror film Wolfen, and spent the early part of the decade building a resume of supporting and guest roles. A small part in Crocodile Dundee (1986) preceded what would become his breakout role.1
In 1988 he was cast as Sergeant Al Powell, a desk-bound LAPD officer who becomes an unlikely lifeline for Bruce Willis's trapped hero in Die Hard. The role came together after Gene Hackman became unavailable for the part. The film was a massive box-office hit and Powell became one of its most beloved supporting characters. VelJohnson reprised the role in Die Hard 2 (1990) and later provided the character's voice for the 2002 GameCube video game Die Hard: Vendetta.1
Also in 1989 he played Detective David Sutton in the comedy Turner & Hooch alongside Tom Hanks.1
That same year he was cast as Carl Winslow, a Chicago police officer and devoted father, in the ABC sitcom Family Matters. The show was a cornerstone of ABC's "TGIF" Friday night programming block and ran for nine seasons (1989-1998), the final season on CBS. VelJohnson appeared in all 215 episodes as the show's anchor. The series launched the career of Jaleel White as Steve Urkel, but Winslow remained the show's anchor and moral center throughout its run.1
Following Family Matters, VelJohnson continued a steady stream of television guest appearances, including roles on Will & Grace, Monk, Bones, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. In 2021 he voiced Principal Winslow in the animated superhero series Invincible. Beginning in January 2023 he appeared in a recurring campaign of Progressive insurance television commercials billed as "TV Dad," leaning knowingly into his Carl Winslow persona.1 In 2024 he competed on Dancing with the Stars Season 33, partnered with Emma Slater, finishing in 10th place.3
VelJohnson plays the unnamed Jail Guard who retrieves the Ghostbusters from their holding cell at the NYPD lock-up and informs them that Mayor Lenny wants to see them because the city is sliding into chaos ahead of Gozer's arrival. It is a small role but a pivot point in the film's third act.2
According to James Greene's production history A Convenient Parallel Dimension, the Jail Guard was a consolation prize: VelJohnson had been a finalist for the role of Winston Zeddemore but lost the part to Ernie Hudson, and director Ivan Reitman offered him the smaller role as a result.4
On set, Bill Murray played a prank on VelJohnson by walking up to him and ripping the buttons off the police uniform he was wearing for the role. The costume department sewed the buttons back on before filming continued.
In the IDW Comics continuity the character was later given the name Officer Tim Carlson, though that name does not apply to the film canon.5
VelJohnson has never married and has no children. As of the late 2000s he maintained residences in Raleigh, North Carolina; Los Angeles, California; and Oceanside, New York.1
Some content on this page was researched using the Ghostbusters Wiki on Fandom.
"Reginald VelJohnson," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reginald_VelJohnson ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10
Ghostbusters (1984), Columbia Pictures. NYPD lock-up scene, third act. Reginald VelJohnson appears as the Jail Guard. ↩ ↩2
Sportskeeda, "Who has been eliminated so far in Dancing with the Stars season 33? Details explored" (October 2024), https://www.sportskeeda.com/us/reality-tv/who-eliminated-far-dancing-stars-season-33-details-explored. VelJohnson and partner Emma Slater were eliminated during the season's double elimination, placing 10th. ↩
Greene, James, Jr. (2022). A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever. Lyons Press, Essex CT USA. ISBN 9781493048243. Recounts that the Winston Zeddemore role nearly went to VelJohnson before Ernie Hudson won it, with the jail guard part offered as a gift from director Ivan Reitman. ↩
Ghostbusters: Year One Issue #1 (IDW Publishing, 2020), p. 2, panel 3. The jail guard is named Tim Carlson in the IDW Comics continuity only. ↩
