Russom's first acting work was on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light in the late 1960s. He subsequently appeared in another CBS soap opera Love is a Many Splendored Thing as Joe Taylor from 1972 to 1973. Russom was the second actor to play the role of Willis Frame on the NBC soap Another World, a role that he kept for several years. His early film career included The Trial of the Catonsville Nine as David Durst and Stephen King's Silver Bullet. He also appeared on the TV show Mission: Impossible as Sam Evans.
At the 1991 Emmys, Russom received a nomination for his work in the category Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Special for his work on the 1991 television movie Long Road Home as Titus Wardlow.[citation needed]
Leon Russom's later work included many appearances in dramas, mainly legal or crime. He appeared in many TV shows in the 1990s and the early 2000s, including L.A. Law, Bones, Cold Case, Law & Order, JAG, NYPD Blue, John Doe, The X-Files, Dark Skies, Seinfeld (as an Astros representative in "The Hot Tub") and other shows. He played the police chief of Malibu in the Coen brothers' The Big Lebowski (1998). Recently he appeared in Prison Break as General Jonathan Krantz, head of The Company. His role in the series was initially minor, restricted to sporadic non-speaking appearances. But from the third season on, his role took on increasing importance, culminating in his becoming the main antagonist, right up to The Final Break. He teamed with the Coen brothers once more to play a sheriff in True Grit.[citation needed]

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