Cates broke into television acting when she was only sixteen years old playing the role of Jenny in the BBC sitcom 2point4 Children. After two series she left the show to concentrate on acting in television drama such as Casualty and in low budget films.

In 1995 Cates (then still known as Clare Woodgate) auditioned for the role of Stella in the film An Awfully Big Adventure but unfortunately the casting director thought she was too well known and turned her down. Frustrated by this, Woodgate returned home, dyed her hair red and re-invented herself as a sixteen year old Liverpudlian girl called Georgina Cates who had no previous acting experience. When she re-applied for the same role the casting director was so impressed by the inexperienced scouse girl she immediately hired her. Woodgate kept her real identity secret until half way through filming when she finally confessed to the director and fellow cast members. When news of the audacity of the young actress reached the press she was lauded by the tabloid media but shunned by certain members of the acting community who thought what she did was deceitful and unnecessary. Partly due to the furore she had caused in the acting world she moved to the U.S. to further her career.

Cates went on to co-star in such films as Frankie Starlight (1995), Illuminata (1998), and A Soldier's Sweetheart (1998). She received critical acclaim for her role as Amanda in the Clay Pigeons (1998) with Vince Vaughn and Joaquin Phoenix.

In 1997 she married American actor Skeet Ulrich with whom she had twins. The couple separated and it was announced in mid 2005 that the couple have filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences.

After a seven-year break from the movie industry, Cates returned to the independent film genre to co-star in Sinner as the hustler Lil for which she won a Best Actress award at the Brooklyn Arts Council International Film & Video Festival.