Chavira began his career playing guest-starring roles on television shows, include
NYPD Blue,
24,
The Division,
Joan of Arcadia and
JAG. In 2002, he had a recurring role in the HBO comedy-drama
Six Feet Under and was series regular on the unaired Fox sitcom
The Grubbs. In 2004, he made his big screen debut appearing in a supporting role playing private
José Gregorio Esparza in the western film
The Alamo (2004). In 2004, Chavira was cast as
Carlos Solis, the husband of
Eva Longoria's character,
Gabrielle Solis, in the
ABC comedy-drama series
Desperate Housewives. The series was a breakthrough hit for ABC. In 2005, Chavira listed on the "50 Most Beautiful" list in
People en Español, and the following year named one of "TV's Sexiest Men" by
TV Guide. The series ended in 2012 after eight seasons. Chavira starred in a production of
Tracers at the Odyssey Theatre in
Los Angeles, and also starred in a co-production of
Living Out. He played Stanley Kowalski in the
Guthrie Theater's production of
Tennessee Williams'
A Streetcar Named Desire, from July 3 to August 21, 2010, in
Minneapolis. He also had voice roles as Alejandro Borges in the film
Dead Space: Aftermath and as John Carver in the video game
Dead Space 3. He also appeared in a number of films, including
Days of Wrath (2008),
Saving God (2008), and
Piranha 3D (2010). Along with the cast, Chavira won
Audie Awards for
Audiobook of the Year and
Multi-Voiced Performance in 2010 for ''Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales''. Following
Desperate Housewives, Chavira guest-starred on two episodes of USA Network drama series,
Burn Notice in 2013, playing crime leader Rafael Serrano. Later that year, he went to star in the
NBC sitcom
Welcome to the Family. The series was canceled after three episodes. In 2015, Chavira guest starred on
Castle episode "At Close Range", and in 2016 reunited with Eva Longoria in her short-lived sitcom
Telenovela. From 2016 to 2017, Chavira had a major recurring role in the
ABC political thriller
Scandal during the
fifth and
sixth seasons as Democratic Governor Francisco "Frankie" Vargas who runs for president. At the same time, he had a recurring role in
The CW comedy series,
Jane the Virgin during the
third season as Bruce, Xiomara's (
Andrea Navedo) lover. In 2017, Chavira also had a recurring role in the
Netflix horror-comedy
Santa Clarita Diet alongside
Timothy Olyphant and
Drew Barrymore. In 2020, Chavira was cast as
Abraham Quintanilla, the father of late singer
Selena in the Netflix limited biographical series,
Selena. He was a guest star on
Chicago P.D. in 2021. ==Personal life==