Among his most known roles are opera-singing Jake Fratelli in The Goonies (1985), FBI Special Agent Johnson in Die Hard (1988), James Bond villain Franz Sanchez in Licence to Kill (1989), police deputy chief Phil Heinemann in Predator 2 (1990) and strip club manager Al Torres in Showgirls (1995).

Praised for his voice and vocal interpretations, Davi debuted as a headliner at The Venetian Las Vegas, six months after the record was released.

[1] There he studied opera vocals, and became the winner of the New York State School Music Association Solo Competition at the age of fifteen.

[6] Davi made his television film debut in Contract On Cherry Street, in which he shared the screen with Frank Sinatra.

[6] As for major motion pictures, he has appeared in films including The Goonies, where his role of Jake Fratelli was based upon Davi’s own artistic ideas differing from the original script.

[13] He also starred in "Predator 2", "Illicit Behavior", "Night Trap", "The Iceman", "Mob Town", "Buckle Up", "Inside Man",[14] Die Hard, Showgirls, Son of the Pink Panther, and in the Bond film Licence to Kill (1989) as the villain Franz Sanchez, a South American drug lord and murderer.

[6] In 2004 Davi was cast as the antagonist Acastus Kolya in the television series Stargate: Atlantis, a military leader for the enemy group the Genii.

[23][better source needed] In 2011 David sold an original screenplay entitled The Voice to Atmosphere Entertainment MM.

[26] He was approached in 2021 to direct the film by documentary filmmakers Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney, which focuses on the relationship between Hunter Biden and his father.

He subsequently received classical training with vocal teachers Samuel Margolis and Danial Ferro of Juilliard and Tito Gobbi.

[28] Davi began to focus again on singing in 2011, and worked with Gary Catona as he prepared to record his first children's album.

The album, Davi Sings Sinatra -- On The Road To Romance, was released on October 24, 2011, and garnered positive reviews.

In December 2013, Davi released a Christmas single, "Mistletoe and Holly", with all proceeds benefiting The Salvation Army.

[29] That year he performed tribute concert series for Frank Sinatra at the Venetian Showroom in Las Vegas.

[37] Davi was chosen to tribute Sinatra's 100th birthday for the July 4 PBS special; it was watched by 500,000 people outside the Capitol Building in DC and 15 million viewers.

[citation needed] He is a recipient of the George M. Estabrook Distinguished Service Award from the Hofstra University Alumni Association, has served on the Steering Committee for George Washington University’s Homeland Security Policy Institute, and is a past recipient of the Man of the Year Award from the Los Angeles FBI.

He was a frequent guest on Fox News's late-night satire program Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld.