Garlin has a variety of television and film appearances to his credit, as an actor and a stand-up, including Dr. Katz, Arrested Development, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Late Show with David Letterman, Tom Goes to the Mayor, The Daily Show, and Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Garlin appeared with Eddie Murphy in the box office hit Daddy Day Care and appeared in Steven Soderbergh's Full Frontal, starring Julia Roberts and David Duchovny.
His feature directorial debut, I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With (which he also wrote) premiered to favorable reviews at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. It opened in September 2007. The film co-stars Sarah Silverman and Bonnie Hunt with many memorable supporting turns including appearances by Paul Mazursky, Dan Castellaneta, and Amy Sedaris.
In 2006, Garlin also directed This Filthy World, a one-man show performed by director John Waters.
Garlin is appearing in WALL-E, a film by Pixar that will come out in 2008.

