Pete Davidson felt 'insecure' about 'SNL' dating jokes

‘SNL’ channeled Pete Davidson’s love life for comedy. That made him feel ‘insecure’

Pete Davidson wears sunglasses and a white hoodie against a black backdrop

March 31, 2023 4:06 PM PT

Pete Davidson doesn’t think his romantic life is “interesting,” and it certainly isn’t worth the “Saturday Night Live” spotlight.

The “SNL” comedian opened up about the craze around his high-profile romances for an episode of Jon Bernthal’s “Real Ones” podcast, released Thursday. In the far-ranging interview with the “Punisher” star, Davidson said he wasn’t a fan when “SNL” mined his relationships for material.

“I’d be sitting in the back watching the cold open and — the cold open [is] topical, political humor, whatever’s in the culture. And then, making fun of you,” the “Bupkis” star said (via People). “Then you’ve gotta walk out and do a sketch next and hit your mark and the show just made fun of you.”

Davidson joined the cast of “SNL” in 2014 and announced in May 2022 that he was leaving the sketch comedy series behind. During his tenure on TV, the comic dated a range of famous women including Ariana Grande, model Kaia Gerber and Kim Kardashian. “SNL” ensured the show’s viewers knew that too.

In a 2018 sketch cast member Kyle Mooney mimicked Davidson — from his platinum blond hair and arm tattoos to “a hot celebrity girlfriend.” That same show, Davidson’s brief engagement to Grande made it onto “Weekend Update.”

Davidson said his castmates supported him during his time on the series but that the “SNL” jokes about his personal life made him “feel small” and “super insecure.”

Elsewhere in the podcast (which streams in full exclusively on Bernthal’s Patreon), Davidson said he wasn’t always seeking out girlfriends: It was just a result of working at a Hollywood institution.

He also said it was “a really s— feeling” to have his love life overshadow his career.

“I became more known before the work was there, but I was always working,” he said.