[2][3] In 2004, James was cast to portray the role of Jay Corgan in New Line Cinema's musical drama film Raise Your Voice.
[4][5] In 2006, James signed on for the BBC drama television series The Innocence Project portraying the role of Nick Benitz.
[7] In 2009, James portrayed the role of Ben in Paramount Home Entertainment's Direct-to-DVD sequel Without a Paddle: Nature's Calling.
Shortly after appearing in The Afternoon Play, James joined a boy band produced by Simon Fuller.
For What a Girl Wants, he learned to play the guitar and sang the songs "Long Time Coming" and "Greatest Story Ever Told", which appear on the film's soundtrack.