With his handsome blond looks and Roman nose, Sands is equally at home in period pieces or contemporary dramas playing either heroes or villains. He first received attention as photographer Jon Swain in "The Killing Fields" (1984) and achieved star status opposite Helena Bonham Carter in James Ivory's E.M. Forster adaptation, "A Room with a View" (1986). Sands cut a dashing figure as poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in Ken Russell's "Gothic" (1986) and went over-the-top in his portrayal of the title character in the campy horror film "Warlock" (1989) and it inevitable sequel "Warlock: The Armageddon" (1993). He went on to offer strong supporting performances as an overweight junkie in David Cronenberg's "Naked Lunch", as composer Franz Liszt in James Lepine's "Impromptu" (both 1991) and as Elisabeth Shue's abusive pimp in Mike Figgis' acclaimed "Leaving Las Vegas"