Born in Dayton, Ohio, to a mother from the Philippines and an African-American father, Davis began his career in the entertainment industry as a model in prints ads and TV commercials, but graduated to guest spots on various shows by the time he was in his early 20s. He first garnered more than passing attention in 2011 as football player Kwan Kirkland on select episodes of the sports-oriented drama series "The Game," and followed it up with a brief stint on the teen-angst show "Switched at Birth." Davis really hit his stride, however, in 2013. Beginning the year as another hunky-doctor addition to "Grey's Anatomy," he popped up temporarily on "The Client List," much to the delight of Lifetime audiences. However, Davis had his biggest break as a notable new arrival in a spring episode of "The Vampire Diaries." This installment introduced his ruthless vampire character, Marcel, who wages a bitter feud with the ages-old Mikaelson family of fellow bloodsuckers. In fall of 2013, Marcel returned as a key figure in "The Originals," which relates the further exploits of the fanged schemer and his paranormal-powered rivals.