Joseph Gordon-Levitt first appeared as a child actor in the 1988 Western television film ‘Stranger on My Land’ directed by Larry Elikann. He went on to appear in television films like ‘Settle the Score’ (1989), ‘Changes’ (1991), and ‘Hi Honey – I'm Dead’ (1991), before starring as ‘Daniel Collins / David Collins’ in the American prime time gothic soap opera television series ‘Dark Shadows’ in 1991. He made his big-screen debut in the 1992 American family comedy film ‘Beethoven.’ Even though the film received a mixed response from critics, it became a massive box office success. The following year, he starred as ‘Young Norman Maclean’ in the American drama film ‘A River Runs Through It’ for which he won the ‘Young Artist Award.’
Gordon-Levitt was next playing the role of Ezekiel "Zeke" Jacobson in the comedy film ‘Holy Matrimony’ directed by Leonard Nimoy. In 1996, he joined the main cast of the American sitcom television series ‘3rd Rock from the Sun.’ He played the role of ‘Tommy Solomon’ and remained a part of the series until it went off-air in 2001. Gordon-Levitt made his voice debut in the 2002 American animated science fantasy action-adventure film ‘Treasure Planet’ where he voiced ‘Jim Hawkins.’ While the film received positive reviews from critics, it failed to achieve success at the box office. He was next seen in films like ‘Latter Days’ (2003), ‘Mysterious Skin’ (2004), ‘Havoc’ (2005), ‘The Lookout’ (2007), and ‘Miracle at St. Anna’ (2008).
In 2009, he starred as ‘Tom Hansen’ in the American romantic comedy-drama film ‘500 Days of Summer’ directed by Marc Webb. He earned several award nominations for his performance in the film including the ‘Golden Globe Award’ and ‘Teen Choice Award’ nominations. ‘500 Days of Summer’ earned critical acclaim upon release and was a major box office success. That same year, he also appeared in the military science fiction action film ‘G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra’ where he played the role of ‘Rex Lewis / Cobra Commander.’ In 2010, he joined the cast of the science fiction action film ‘Inception’ directed by Christopher Nolan. The film was a major critical and box office success.
He went on to appear in movies like ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ (2012), ‘Looper’ (2012), ‘Don Jon’ (2013), ‘Sin City: A Dame to Kill For’ (2014), ‘Snowden’ (2016), and ‘Knives Out’ (2019). He was last seen in the 2020 American historical legal drama film ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ where he portrayed ‘Richard Schultz.’ He is all set to appear in the live-action computer-animated musical fantasy drama film ‘Pinocchio’ directed by Robert Zemeckis