Brake was born in Ystrad Mynach, Hengoed, Wales and raised in the United States (North Carolina, Connecticut, Georgia and Tennessee).

Having appeared in numerous productions (including brief appearances in Cold Mountain and Munich), Brake achieved his first significant role in mainstream cinema being cast as Joe Chill in Christopher Nolan's 2005 film, Batman Begins. In this film, his character Chill was the criminal who murdered the Batman's parents, effectively starting him on his path to caped justice.

Following this, Brake appeared as the warped Portman in Doom, with Karl Urban and The Rock. Brake has made a recent appearance in the video for Muse's Knights of Cydonia, playing a villainous Sheriff in a strange futuristic western. He also played the villain Bobby De Witt in The Black Dahlia, and appears in 2007's Hannibal Lecter prequel, Hannibal Rising as the looting criminal Dortlich. He is currently filming Outpost for director Steve Barker.