Former NFL tight end Vernon Davis played in the league for 14 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, the Denver Broncos, and the Washington Commanders before retiring from the sport in 2020.

After a successful football career, Davis recorded his first rap album, wrote a memoir, founded the production companies Reel 85 and Between the Linez Productions, and transitioned into acting as well.

In his latest film, Please Don’t Feed the Children, directed by Steven Spielberg’s daughter Destry, Davis takes on the chilling role of a zombie.

Showbiz Cheat Sheet caught up with him to find out how he prepared for the role in the horror thriller the same way he played in the NFL on game day, what other projects he has in the works, and more.

Davis worked with Destry Allyn Spielberg in her directorial debut

Davis shared that Please Don’t Feed the Children “is about an outbreak that happened and these kids are trying to cross the border. They stumble across the wrong house, and there’s a surprise waiting for them there.”

Davis talked about preparing for the role of such a challenging character, explaining: “When you play a character like that, it’s all about just going all in. Just give it whatever you feel in that moment, go for it. Take that chance. And just be present.

“I think of it like if I’m playing a game on Sunday and there’s 60,000 fans in the stands, you tune them out. Just like when you’re in a scene acting, you tune everything out. Nothing else exists but what’s going on in that moment.”

When asked if Destry is a natural behind the camera like her father, Davis responded, “Oh yes, you could say that.” He added that he had a great experience working with her, “It was my first time working with her. I heard about her and it was her debut. I think she did a phenomenal job.”

Please Don’t Feed the Children is streaming now on Tubi.

Davis has a podcast coming out soon

Davis also has a new podcast in the works.

“It’s called Next Role,” he said. “We have interesting guests who have done something in one space and now they’re moving on to the next space, but they’re continuing to go on to the next thing after the next.

“It’s interesting because there’s quite a few levels … You have some people in sports, say the NFL or the NBA, and they just focus on that one thing that they are doing. Then you have other people who can’t seem to stop. They just keep going after it, so those are the kind of people we want on the show.”

Davis added that doing the podcast, he learned “when we’re talking about what you did before and what you’re doing next in between all of that the conversation goes to so many different places. It’s amazing. We’ve had people on the show crying, all kinds of emotions. It just covers so many different topics and conversations.”

Fans can follow Davis on Instagram and X @VernonDavis85 to learn more about Next Role and all of his upcoming projects.