Gained fame as the vampire Emmett Cullen in the Twilight Saga movies. He also starred as the title characters in both The Legend of Hercules and the 2013 film Tarzan.
He attended Chapman University before pursuing a career in acting. He appeared on Model Citizens and The Bold and the Beautiful. Early in his career, he appeared in Accepted, Prom Night, and Ghosts of Goldfield.
In 2010, he was one of the models featured in Calvin Klein's underwear campaign.
He previously dated soap star Kayla Ewell, and actress Sharni Vinson in 2011. In 2016 he began dating Brittany Gonzales Lutz and the two married in November 2017. He and Brittany welcomed a daughter on February 22nd, 2021 named Ashtyn Lilly Lutz.
He starred in the 2011 film Immortals with Mickey Rourke.