Rise to Fame
Saving Private Ryan wasn't supposed to make him a star. He was already grinding through supporting roles when Spielberg cast him as the ill-fated medic Wade in 1998. Critics started using phrases like 'actor of his generation.' The Friends recurring role as Phoebe's oddball half-brother Frank Jr. had already put his face on TV, but the Vanity Fair 'next generation' cover after Saving Private Ryan signaled Hollywood was paying attention. Boiler Room in 2000 should've been his arrival. It wasn't.
In the Spotlight
Somewhere between acting roles, he built a film studio called Stellascope and spent over a decade learning to shoot on celluloid. That pivot produced Strange Darling in 2024, a 35mm thriller he photographed and produced that landed at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. He's still acting (he reprised the villain Selfridge in Avatar: Fire and Ash in 2025), but the camera work is the more interesting development. The actor who was supposed to be the next big thing is quietly becoming a serious cinematographer.
Side Notes
His twin sister Marissa married Beck, which makes for a notably interlocking family tree. He was raised in Scientology and stayed with it publicly, putting him in the subset of Hollywood that doesn't pretend. When Leah Remini launched her expose series, he reportedly went public with objections. The faith is either the most or least interesting thing about him depending on who you ask, but he's still working steadily, which is probably all that matters.