HE might be laughing now, but Adam Sandler came close to becoming cat food when a cheetah attacked him on safari.

The comedian appeared on US talk show Late Show with David Letterman earlier this week, where he shared tales from his recent trip to Africa.

The 46-year-old star was there to shoot his new movie Blended with Drew Barrymore, and on one of his days off, took a safari trip with his family.

He was attacked while on a private game reserve after an encounter with the big cat went "a little bit wrong".

"A very nice guy let me in with the cheetah and said I could feed the cheetah with my hands, and something went a little bit wrong," he told Letterman.

The footage shows Sandler crouched down when the cheetah suddenly lunges at him from behind.

"I was very nervous. It was fast ... All I was going to do was let him eat me", he admitted.

"There was not one part of me that was going to fight back. I was like, 'Alright, this is how I'm dying. This is great!'"