A Broadway actor, Martin played Detective Ed Green on Law & Order until he exited the show in 2008.

NYU alum Martin made his first TV appearance came in 1995 when he was cast in a microscopic role on Guiding Light; he was working at a pizza joint at the time and had to view his episode during one of shift breaks. In 1996, he earned his big break when he was cast as Tom Collins in the original off-Broadway production of Rent. The success of the show put Martin on the map and he attracted even more attention in 1998 when he made the jump to the small screen as Calista Flockhart's love interest on Ally McBeal. The buzz sparked Dick Wolf's interest and Martin landed the role of Detective Ed Green on Law & Order without even auditioning. Wolf's decision paid off when Martin's 1999 debut episode drew the largest audience in the show's history. In 2008, after nine years, Martin turned in his badge and exited the show. He returned to his roots on Broadway in The Merchant of Venice with Al Pacino and to his original role of Tom Collins in the movie version of Rent.

Notoriously resistant to discussing his personal life, when Martin manages to answer questions about his romances, he does it without using male or female pronouns. Go figure. [Image via Getty]