[2] He is best known for his roles as Ricky Fitts in American Beauty (1999), which earned him a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Supporting Actor; Seneca Crane in The Hunger Games (2012); Doyle in Interstellar (2014); Erik in Mission: Impossible – Fallout; and Jamie Dutton in Yellowstone.

He was one of four subjects in the documentary My Big Break (2009), which covered his fame after American Beauty and his subsequent struggles with substance abuse.

He began appearing in the FX anthology series American Horror Story in 2014, playing Edward Mordrake in Freak Show.

He starred in the thriller Dolan's Cadillac,[12] based on the short story by Stephen King,[13] and There Be Dragons by director Roland Joffé.

In 2010, he starred opposite Nina Arianda in the premiere of the David Ives play Venus in Fur off-Broadway at the Classic Stage Company in New York City.

[14][15][16][17] In March 2012, Bentley had a supporting role in the blockbuster movie The Hunger Games, playing gamemaker Seneca Crane.

The following year, Bentley guest starred in Murphy's FX series American Horror Story for its fourth season, Freak Show.

In a New York Times article on February 8, 2010,[21] he described his descent into drug addiction that began almost immediately after his success in American Beauty.