Pete Davidson 'Really Wanted' to Leave SNL Last Year 'Because They Make Fun of Me on That Show' — Watch Video

Ryan Schwartz
·3 min read


In a new, wide-ranging interview, Saturday Night Live‘s Pete Davidson is opening up about his desire to exit the late-night sketch comedy series. The reason, he says, is because he is constantly the butt of the joke.

“I personally think I should be done with that show, because they make fun of me on it,” he tells TV and radio personality Charlamagne Tha God in the video below. “I get it, but, like, I am cold open political punchlines, I am Weekend Update jokes… When I’m not there, they’ll be like, ‘Uh huh, Pete Davidson’s a f—king jerk face.’ It’s like, whose side are you on?

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“I have a weird feeling in that building where I don’t know whose team they’re playing for,” he continues, suggesting that he doesn’t know if “I’m the joke or if I’m in on the joke.” He then admits, “I really wanted last year to be my last year, but I’m still around and trying….”

After singling out series boss/”father figure” Lorne Michaels (“Lorne’s the s–t… and has treated me with nothing but love”), Davidson goes on to describe the “cutthroat” environment inside Studio 8H: “Everyone’s trying to get their s—t on. Everyone wants to be the next thing… You’re not gonna get coddled over there, you know… they don’t give a f—k at the end of the day.”

Asked whether he thinks his castmates treat him differently because of all the media attention he receives, Davidson — who has publicly struggled with mental health, has been romantically linked with Ariana Grande and Kate Beckinsale, and landed a role on the upcoming The Suicide Squad sequel — answers, “No, I honestly think they’re just wrapped up in their own s—t… It’s like, ‘OK, who’s hosting this week? I gotta get my f—king ducks sketch on.'” He goes on to acknowledge that being on the show has benefited him as a live performer, even if it hasn’t done much in the way of boosting his self-confidence. “I feel like everybody there is so smart, and I feel like the unfunniest one there,” he says.

Davidson joined SNL as a featured player in Season 40, before eventually becoming a full-time cast member. He is currently midway through his sixth season, and continues to make regular appearances at the Update desk, alongside Colin Jost and Michael Che.

TVLine has reached out to NBC for comment.

Press PLAY on the video below to watch Davidson’s chat with Charlamagne Tha God in full. (SNL comes up around the 25-minute mark.)

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