Novlan made his feature film acting debut in the 2009 direct-to-video horror film
Maneater and his television acting debut in the eighth episode of
Season 6 of
Bones. In 2013, he was selected to take part in the
ABC Discovers: Los Angeles Talent Showcase and in 2016 starred in the independent feature film
Flatbush Luck, which earned him award nominations for Best Actor at that year's
FilmOut San Diego and the
Hoboken International Film Festival. In addition, he went on to appear in guest roles on many TV shows, most notably
Parenthood,
Letterkenny and
Modern Family. In 2019, Novlan ascended to prominence by assuming the role of the "Struggling Actor" in a humorous televised advertisement produced by
Liberty Mutual. The actor notably mispronounces "Liberty Mutual" as "Liberty Biberty" in the commercial. This particular commercial garnered such widespread amusement and viewership that it remained in regular circulation until the year 2022. In September 2023, a new commercial for the aforementioned insurance company featuring Novlan was unveiled. In March 2020, he was cast in the recurring role of Gregory Manes in
The CW's
Roswell, New Mexico, first appearing near the end of its second season. He reprised his role for the series' third season in 2021.
Entertainment Weekly exclusively reported that Novlan would star in a
Hallmark Channel television film
Christmas Class Reunion, opposite
Aimee Teegarden. The film premiered on 10 December 2022. In September 2024, Novlan was cast in his second Hallmark film, ''Debbie Macomber's Joyful Mrs. Miracle'', scheduled to air on November 28, 2024. Novlan portrayed Austin, the manor's caretaker and Charlotte's (Pascal Lamothe-Kipnes) first love, in a story about three adult siblings returning to their childhood home to fulfill their late grandmother's wishes.
The Bold and the Beautiful In July 2020, Novlan began playing the contract role of
Dr. John Finnegan, on the
CBS Daytime soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. It was announced that Novlan had vacated the series in April 2022. Novlan's departure from the role, caused a major social media firestorm and uproar in which fans and critics alike responded negatively to the show's decision to write off Finn and had begun campaigning for the actor's return to the show, with several
online petitions, the use of the hashtag #SaveFinn across various social media platforms, including
Twitter, and expression of their devastation in soap opera sites' publications polls. Novlan re-appeared on screen in late May in the series, where the viewers witnessed a shocking twist, where his character Finn was revealed to be alive, which meant the actor had never exited the series. During a segment episode of
The Talk, Novlan reveals that he had known about Finn's revival but was bound by contractual obligations to maintain secrecy regarding this storyline arc. ==Personal life==