Patton's first acting role was in 2005's Hitch,which starred Will Smith and Eva Mendes. She followed that with a small part in the drama London and appeared alongside OutKast members Andre Benjamin and Big Boi in Idlewild.
Patton was also the leading lady in the 2006 film Déjà Vu, a thriller starring Denzel Washington and Val Kilmer and played television reporter Kate Madison in 2008's Swing Vote. She appeared in the film Mirrors, alongside Kiefer Sutherland, in 2008. She also appeared in her husband Robin Thicke's "Lost Without You" video.
In Precious, a film based on the novel Push by Sapphire, Patton plays Blu Rain, a teacher at an alternative high school in New York. There she encounters and mentors the main character Precious.
In fall 2010, Patton was annouced as succeeding Sharon Stone as the new full-time assistant district attorney on the NBC legal drama, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. However, Patton landed the lead female role in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and thus her role on SVU was reduced to one episode. She was replaced by Melissa Sagemiller.
