His location in the grape-growing Napa Valley led to Getz's television debut in a made-for-television horror film Killer Bees (1974).

Getz then moved to New York City, where he became active in local theater while doing an 18-month stint as Neil Johnson on the soap opera Another World.

[citation needed] Getz appeared in The Happy Hooker (1975) and followed up with several other roles before starring in the Coen Brothers' neo-noir thriller Blood Simple (1984).

However, ABC rescheduled it repeatedly and finally relegated it to the "graveyard slot",[citation needed] 10:00 pm ET, Monday night.

In 1991, Getz appeared as the unpleasant boyfriend of professional women in Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead and Curly Sue.

He has guest-starred in How I Met Your Mother, Prison Break, The King of Queens and Private Practice, and had recurring roles in Homeland (2014–2017), Timeless (2016–2018), Bosch (2017–2018), and the Netflix series A Man on the Inside (2024).