O'Connell began his acting career at a young age. As a child, he did commercial work for
Duncan Hines cookies. Shortly after turning eleven, he landed his first feature film role as the character Vern Tessio in
Rob Reiner's
Stand by Me. In 1987, O'Connell appeared in a commercial for
Frosted Flakes. He starred in the Canadian science-fiction sitcom
My Secret Identity from 1988 to 1991 as the teen hero who develops superhuman traits. During a summer break from NYU, Jerry starred in the feature film
Calendar Girl alongside
Jason Priestley and
Gabriel Olds. He also appeared in the short-lived ABC sitcom
Camp Wilder, with
Jay Mohr and
Hilary Swank, in 1992. During his junior year, O'Connell auditioned for the television pilot
Sliders (also filmed in Canada). He was offered the role of Quinn Mallory in the series, which ran for three seasons on
Fox and two seasons on the
Syfy Channel. He served as producer during his fourth season, and is credited with writing and directing several episodes. O'Connell has since gone on to star in such films as
Jerry Maguire,
Body Shots,
Mission to Mars,
Tomcats,
Scream 2, and
Kangaroo Jack. O'Connell also guest-hosted in the late 90s on the late night talk show
Later. O'Connell has also tried his hand at screenwriting and sold his first screenplay, for
First Daughter, to
New Regency in 1999. The film was released in 2004 by
20th Century Fox-based
Davis Entertainment. O'Connell served as executive producer and received a "story by" credit on the film, which starred
Katie Holmes and
Michael Keaton. O'Connell starred as Detective Woody Hoyt on the
NBC crime drama
Crossing Jordan (2001) until its cancelation in May 2007, and was engaged to actress
Rebecca Romijn. He starred opposite her in the
Ugly Betty episode "
Derailed". He played Hoyt in several episodes of
Las Vegas. In 2004, he wore a
diaper on
Last Call with Carson Daly, during a mock commercial skit for the
GoodNites bedwetting product. The
National Enquirer caught him filming the skit and printed a photo of him in his diaper. In 2005, O'Connell guest-starred in the
Justice League Unlimited episode "Clash", voicing
Captain Marvel. He reprised the role in the
DC Universe Animated Original Movies short film
Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam alongside
George Newbern, who reprised the role of
Superman, having done the voice for the animated series. Jerry's younger brother,
Charlie has appeared in several productions in which his brother starred, such as in
Sliders and
Crossing Jordan. In 2007–2008 O'Connell starred in
ABC's
Carpoolers, which ran from October 2, 2007, to March 4, 2008. In early 2008, O'Connell participated in a widely circulated Internet video parody of the leaked
Tom Cruise video on
Scientology. Cruise was O'Connell's co-star in
Jerry Maguire. O'Connell co-wrote and appeared in a video parody called "Young Hillary Clinton", satirizing
Hillary Clinton's 2008 primary campaign. On February 2, 2008, O'Connell hosted
VH1's
Pepsi Smash Super Bowl Bash, which aired the night before
Super Bowl XLII and featured musical guests
Maroon 5 and
Mary J. Blige. On April 28, 2008, he appeared as a guest star on ABC's
Samantha Who?. In late 2008 O'Connell starred in
Fox's
Do Not Disturb, co-starring
Niecy Nash, but
Fox cancelled the show after only three episodes. O'Connell appeared in the 2009
thriller film Obsessed as "Ben", the best friend and co-worker of the film's
protagonist Derek Charles (
Idris Elba). He appeared in
Eastwick on ABC, which starred his wife, Romijn. He portrayed Derrick Jones in
Alexandre Aja's
Piranha 3D, which also stars
Adam Scott and
Elisabeth Shue. O'Connell co-starred with
David Tennant in the pilot for legal drama
Rex Is Not Your Lawyer, which was not picked up for production. In 2010, O'Connell starred with
Jim Belushi in the
CBS comedy drama The Defenders, which was cancelled on May 15, 2011, after one season. O'Connell appeared on Broadway at the
Golden Theatre in
Seminar, written by
Theresa Rebeck. The play, directed by Sam Gold, opened on November 20, 2011, starring
Alan Rickman,
Lily Rabe,
Hamish Linklater and
Hettienne Park. On June 4, 2012, it was announced that O'Connell would play
Herman Munster in a reboot of
The Munsters, titled
Mockingbird Lane; the remake series was never picked up for production; however, the pilot would air as a Halloween special on October 26. On May 15, 2013, it was announced that O'Connell would play Stuart Strickland on
We Are Men, alongside
Tony Shalhoub. In April 2015, O'Connell returned to
Broadway in the comedy
Living on Love, with
Renee Fleming,
Anna Chlumsky and
Douglas Sills. It closed after 37 performances. In 2017, O'Connell was the main love interest in the Hallmark film
Love Locks, co-starring his real-life wife Rebecca Romijn. He also starred in a Canadian police comedy-drama series called
Carter, which was North Bay, Ontario and aired for two seasons. In January 2020, O'Connell appeared in the Roundabout's American Airlines Theatre's Broadway revival of ''
A Soldier's Play'' as Captain Taylor in an ensemble cast headed by
David Alan Grier and
Blair Underwood. In 2020, he began starring in commercials for
Bob Evans grocery items alongside
Alfonso Ribeiro. In July 2021,
CBS announced that O'Connell would be joining
The Talk as a permanent co-host, replacing
Sharon Osbourne. That same month, he hosted a test-run of a new syndicated version of
Pictionary on Fox stations, which was successful enough to launch with a full season in fall 2022. He and wife Romijn hosted
The Real Love Boat on CBS, in 2022. ==Personal life==