She began her career as a child actor, appearing on television in small guest roles on Touched by an Angel and Ally McBeal, before earning critical acclaim for her performance in The Education of Little Tree (1997). After being cast in supporting roles in Jack Frost and Mighty Joe Young (both 1998), Boorem had a lead role in the drama Hearts in Atlantis (2001), opposite Anton Yelchin and Anthony Hopkins, which garnered her further critical acclaim.

Boorem also had prominent supporting roles in the war drama The Patriot (2000) and the thriller Along Came a Spider (2001). She went on to star in numerous teen films in the early-to-mid 2000s, including the surf film Blue Crush (2002), the comedy Sleepover (2004), and the drama Augusta, Gone (2006). Boorem was a recurring guest star on the network series Dawson's Creek in 2002 and 2003. She had a central role in John Carpenter's horror film The Ward (2010), followed by roles in several independent films.

Boorem is making her feature directorial debut with Hollywood.Con (2021), starring Tom Arnold and Brian Krause.