In 1974, Banks moved to Los Angeles and performed on stage before picking up bit parts on television. He starred in the 1974 sex public service announcement (PSA) "Linda's Film on Menstruation", produced by the Los Angeles Public Library system, which was referenced by John Oliver in a 2015 episode of his show "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" focusing on sex education. Banks appeared on the show, ridiculing the content of the PSA. He co-starred in "48 Hrs." and "Beverly Hills Cop", and made appearances in "Armed and Dangerous", "Buckaroo Banzai", "Freejack", "Flipper", "Airplane!", "Gremlins", "Murder Me, Murder You", "", and "Identity Thief".