Before appearing in 76 episodes of JAG, Lawrence was active in Hollywood with both TV and film appearances. He debuted as a perpetrator defended by James Earl Jones in LA Law. In the late 1980s, he had a recurring role on CBS' Murphy Brown and in the early 1990s was a semi-regular on the short-lived Whoopi Goldberg series, Bagdad Cafe. In film, Lawrence's first screen appearance was in the 1990 crime and horror thriller, The First Power with Lou Diamond Phillips and Mykelti Williamson. He was next seen on screen in the 1993 horror drama, Doppelganger with Drew Barrymore, Dennis Christopher and Sally Kellerman. Lawrence has also been seen in the Jean-Claude Van Damme vehicle Timecop, Celtic Pride, Turbulence and Howard Stern's Private Parts. After JAG, Lawrence appeared as a crew chief in the blockbuster film Avatar and as "Maurice" in 2010's The Social Network.