Who did Akili McDowell play in Billions? 'David Makes Man' star arrested on murder charges

Akili McDowell, who played Savion Williams in Showtime's Billions, was arrested on August 1, 2024, for a murder linked to a shooting at a Houston apartment complex last month, which resulted in the death of Cesar Peralta. McDowell is in custody with a $400,000 bond. Authorities have asked the public to contact the Homicide Unit with any information related to the incident.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez confirmed the arrest through Facebook on Saturday, August 3, revealing that the authorities responded to a shooting incident on July 20, 2024, where an adult male was discovered with gunshot wounds.

Furthermore, the social media post also stated that the man died on the spot and the suspects ran away when the authorities arrived. Ed mentioned that Akili McDowell was transported into the Harris County Jail and an investigation was launched to find more details.

The Post also obtained the Harris County police records which disclosed that Akili was charged with theft a day before he was accused of murder. The bond for the theft case is currently set at $210.

However, further updates are currently awaited on how Akili was associated with the victim.

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Akili McDowell has many TV shows under his credits: Roles and other details explained

As mentioned, Akili McDowell has gained recognition for his performance in Billions as Savion Williams. The character appeared for the first time in the fifth season of the series and he was a young kid growing up in the childhood hometown of Axe.

McDowell was cast in the show in 2020 and he announced the same in a now-deleted Instagram post. The caption stated:

"New Show alert. Catch ya boy as Savion Williams in @sho_billions for @showtime. I am so thankful for this opportunity."

However, he initially accumulated a huge fanbase with the drama series David Makes Man. In an interview with Vulture magazine in 2019, McDowell opened up on his experience of working with personalities such as Michael B. Jordan and addressed the things he learned from them.

"Yes, of course, because they are obviously very wise and very influential people. Just being a part of the OWN family and the OWN network is really amazing, because of the OWN network, all of the shows mean something. We're all unapologetically black and it's just so real, all the shows on OWN," he said.

Akili also revealed that he was able to relate to the character David at the time of the audition. He stated that David was a person who was raised by a single mother and he had to take care of different responsibilities at a young age, and he could feel the same in his life.

Apart from acting, Akili McDowell also has an interest in basketball and baseball. He was 9 years old when he started acting and spent most of his life in Houston, Texas. McDowell is also active on Instagram with around 14,000 followers.