He is widely known for his role of Lance Cumson, the irresponsible grandson of Angela Channing—played by Jane Wyman—in the soap opera Falcon Crest (1981–1990), for which he received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film.

Both Williams and Dahl were best friends of actress Jane Wyman (who knew him from birth), and would later work alongside Lamas on Falcon Crest.

As a last-minute replacement for Steven Ford, Lamas secured a non-speaking role as a jock in the 1978 musical film Grease, in which he dyed his hair blond.

[9] In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Lamas had guest-starring roles in a number of TV series including Switch, Sword of Justice, Dear Detective, Secrets of Midland Heights, Fantasy Island, The Love Boat and Hotel.

The pilot was later retooled to become the hit prime time drama series Falcon Crest, which aired on CBS for nine seasons from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990.

Lamas was nominated for a Golden Globe and two Soap Opera Digest Awards for his work on the series; he was the only actor to appear in all 227 episodes.

During his tenure on the show, Lamas had the lead role in the poorly received film Body Rock (1984), where he was nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor.

He also performed a song on the film's soundtrack, and the track "Fools Like Me" became his only single to date to crack the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at #85.

The co-founder of the Golden Raspberry Awards, John J.B. Wilson, later named Body Rock as one of "The 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever Made".

[10] Lamas began carving out a niche for himself as an action-hero, showcasing his martial-arts skills by starring in such movies as the Snake Eater trilogy (1989–1992), Bounty Tracker (1993), Gladiator Cop (1995), Terminal Justice (1996), and many similar low-budget action-films.

From 1992 to 1997, Lamas played the lead role of Reno Raines (a falsely accused cop) in the syndicated series Renegade, which allowed him to exercise his enthusiasm for Harley-Davidson motorcycles as well as martial arts.

That fall, he performed at Kean University Premiere Stages in Union, New Jersey, in the title role in Steven Dietz's Dracula.