Hollywood actor Shelley Malil, 43, was arrested in Oceanside, California. He has been charged with attempted murder against his former girlfriend, mayhem and burglary. He is said to have taken a knife and stabbed the woman about twenty times. She was critically injured.

It happened on Sunday night in San Marcos, about 15 miles east of Oceanside, when police received reports of screaming for help and some broken glass.

"Malil and the victim had apparently been in a dating relationship which recently ended," the sheriff's department said in a statement.

He left the stabbed woman lying on the floor and took a train from Los Angeles to talk to his lawyer. His attorney’s identity is still unknown.

The actor’s family and lawyer are persuading him to turn himself in. Malil, who lives in Sherman Oaks, a suburb of Los Angeles, remained in custody on a $2 million bail.

Not much is known about the victim’s condition, either. It appears she was in critical condition on Monday and authorities didn’t even know her name.

Malil is best known for his appearance in “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” as one of Steve Carell's co-workers. He has also appeared in shows such as "NYPD Blue”,"Scrubs" and “Reba.” He was a theater actor also.

Bottom in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Stella Adler Theatre garnered him a Best Featured Actor nomination at the 1997 Los Angeles Ovation Awards. His spare time doesn’t resemble the one a murderer. On the contrary, he takes a Zen-like approach to golf, goes to about five films a week and enjoys motivational books.