Powell has appeared in more than one hundred films, beginning in the 1980s. His credits include Menace II Society (1993), Dead Presidents (1995), Why Do Fools Fall in Love (1998), Rush Hour (1998), Next Friday (2000), and its 2002 sequel, Friday After Next, Woman Thou Art Loosed (2004), and Ray (2004). He played Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1999 television film Selma, Lord, Selma. Powell also has had many supporting roles in smaller direct-to-video films in 2000s and 2010s.
In 2013 a judgment was entered against Powell for sexual assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress for $153,095.50. According to the plaintiff's attorney, several attempts to collect the debt from the actor in Louisiana had been unsuccessful, so the judgment was recorded in California to garnish the actor's wages.
On television, Powell had the recurring roles on Roc, South Central, and Army Wives, and well as guest-starred on In the Heat of the Night, Murder, She Wrote, NYPD Blue, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In 2016, Powell was cast as main antagonist in the Bounce TV first prime time soap opera, Saints & Sinners opposite Vanessa Bell Calloway and Gloria Reuben.
Powell is also known for his voice acting role as the antagonist Big Smoke from the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. In 2017, he directed the second season of My Step Kidz.
