George Kittle eyes new job as latest off-field venture hints at post NFL career change

George Kittle is pursuing a new career side quest – acting.

The San Francisco 49ers tight end is currently on the team’s Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list after suffering a torn Achilles during the 2025 NFL season.

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With some additional free time on his hands as he continues his rehabilitation, Kittle has pursued other career avenues in the meantime.

According to Deadline, the seven-time Pro Bowler is set to make his acting debut in an eight-part cinematic frontier series called Dinosaurs of the Wild West.

The show comes from Australian filmmaker Luke Sparke, who is known for being the creator of Primitive War.

Kittle’s is set to play “an original character in the new frontier, complete with his own dinosaur, marking his first on-screen acting role.”

The 32-year-old will join father-and-son duo Martin and Jesse Kove, most known for their roles on Cobra Kai, and Rachel Pizzolatto, who has also been casted.

“George is someone who discovered Primitive War on his own and talked about it publicly, and that’s what brought us together,” Sparke said.

“His passion for this kind of storytelling is completely authentic, and that energy is exactly what the frontier needs.

“Having him, the Koves and Rachael together so far is the kind of ensemble that gets built around a story worth telling.”

The story is set in an alternate 1879, and is based around the concept of humans and dinosaurs building civilisation together, with it having been pitched as ‘House of the Dragon’ meets ‘Tombstone.’

The three main hero roles are still being casted, with the independent project still seeking to meet its public funding goal on Kickstarter.

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But the interest and popularity is clearly there, where as of writing, the project has received $243,000 in donations of a $350,000 target with six days left to go.

“We’re past the point of asking permission,” Sparke said. “The audience has already shown interest in extraordinary numbers. “This is a new way of making ambitious content, with creators going directly to the fans who want it by building their own audience.

“If enough people pre-order it, we make it. It’s that simple. Now it’s just educating this new system and turning those millions of views into pre-orders.”

Pre-ordering the series is the only way to see Kittle’s much-anticipated acting debut, at least as of now.

49ers injury concerns continue to mount

Kittle isn’t the only member of the 49ers who is sidelined to begin training camp ahead of the 2026 NFL season.

The Niners enter preparations for the 2026 campaign already looking depleted, especially on offense.

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In the first week since players reported back to the team after the offseason, free agent acquisition Christian Kirk has already picked up a calf injury, while running back Jordan James is out dealing with a fractured rib.

Even head coach Kyle Shanahan is a bit worse for wear, after it was revealed that he had been involved in a car accident earlier in July.

But the biggest concern is over wide receiver Ricky Pearsall.

The former first-round pick has endured an injury-laden career since entering the NFL, and is now currently dealing with knee swelling that stems back to the PCL injury he suffered last season.

It is causing so much of an issue that the Niners are mulling up whether it would be in his best interests for him to undergo surgery, which would force him to miss the entirety of the upcoming season.

It also put San Francisco in a precarious situation, with them all of a sudden looking short at wideout, despite the addition of six-time Pro Bowler Mike Evans in the offseason.

Ultimately, they attempted to somewhat mitigate this by reuniting with veteran free agent Deebo Samuel, who spent six seasons with the Bay Area outfit to begin his career before spending one year away at the Washington Commanders.