After graduating from high school, Durance moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, to pursue her interest in acting professionally. "I wanted to get my feet wet in a smaller area than Los Angeles when I gave it a try", Durance has said. She continued to study acting, starting out with background work, graduating to commercials, and then guest-starring roles, landing more substantial roles each time.

In 2004, she guest-starred on The Chris Isaak Show playing Ashley, a woman on a date with Chris. In Tru Calling, her character was a contender in a beauty pageant opposite Eliza Dushku's character. On the Sci-Fi Channel, she played an intergalactic librarian in Andromeda and a love interest for Teal'c in Stargate SG-1. She also played a sister to one of the leads in the Canadian show The Collector.

Durance is perhaps best known for her role as Lois Lane on the WB (now the CW) series Smallville. She was a frequent guest star for the fourth season of the show (2004-05) and join