Pete Davidson was noticeably absent from this past weekend’s Saturday Night Live, prompting viewers to wonder if he’d decided to skip the show amid Kanye West’s repeated online comments and harassment.
The latest episode featured John Mulaney hosting for the fifth time in his career, with LCD Soundsystem appearing as the musical guest. However, the fact Davidson wasn’t there may have surprised some people.
Davidson deleted or deactivated his Instagram account earlier this week, with Kanye West claiming credit, even though that wasn’t the case. Apparently, the reason for Davidson’s SNL absence had nothing to do with Kanye West either.
Why did Pete Davidson skip Saturday Night Live?
With Pete Davidson appearing in the opening credits for each episode of SNL, many fans expect he’ll appear at some point during the show. That wasn’t the case on February 26, as Davidson wasn’t even around for the Weekend Update segment like he has been in the past.
Rapper Kanye West, now known as Ye, hasn’t taken credit for Davidson skipping the show, likely because reports arrived ahead of him missing SNL. According to E! News, Davidson is away filming for an upcoming horror movie called The Home, directed by James DeMonaco, known for The Purge.
Davidson has the lead role as Max, who works at a retirement home. While working there, Max discovers the caretakers and residents have “sinister secrets” and uncovers ties to his past, per Deadline.
It’ll be the latest horror film in the catalog for Miramax, also known for horror hits including Halloween, Scream, and Hellraiser.
In addition to that project, Davidson has several others listed for 2022. The King of Staten Island star will voice Marmaduke in an upcoming film based on the title character. He’s also in the movies Meet Cute and Good Morning with a U, both in pre-production.
While Davidson’s absence might have been disappointing for SNL fans, the show may have more than made up for it with guest appearances. Along with Davidson’s friend, SNL host John Mulaney, Paul Rudd, Tina Fey, Steve Martin, Elliott Gould, Candice Bergen, and Conan O’Brian appeared in a Five-Timers Club sketch.
Kanye West took credit for Davidson leaving Instagram
This past week featured yet another Instagram post from rapper Kanye West, as he shared a screenshot of Davidson’s deleted or deactivated Instagram page, claiming he “ran skete off the gram.”
However, Davidson’s recent decision to leave the platform was for the same reason he left social media years before that. The standup comedian has made it no secret that he’s struggled with his mental health, and he felt social media wasn’t a good place to be.
Based on a Page Six source’s insight into Davidson leaving the Gram, he was getting flooded with positive and negative messages or comments. In addition, the report refuting Ye’s claim had a source indicating that Davidson was focusing more on his latest movie projects, which include The Home.
Ye has posted many rants on Instagram about Davidson over the past several months. He’s also shared posts related to his estranged wife Kim Kardashian, their kids, and the divorce situation, among other things.
The most recent post was his claim that he ran “Skete,” his nickname for Davidson, away from Instagram. As of this report, Ye’s IG posts referencing Davidson, Kim K, and his kids have been deleted from his page.
Ye referenced Davidson and Kim at listening party
However, he didn’t shy away from including performances of the newer songs Eazy and City of Gods during his Miami listening party for Donda 2 this past week. Ye has verses in both songs with lines that many people perceived as threats towards Davidson or SNL.
In addition, Ye debuted new material from his unfinished album Donda 2, including a song called Security. It’s believed the song refers to a situation where security stopped Ye at the gate of Kim K’s house when he tried to pick up his kids. Another song called Sci-Fi started with a sample of Kim K’s SNL monologue last year.
The monologue sample featured Kim mentioning the great things about why she married Kanye West. However, it left out the punchline where Kim said she divorced him due to his personality.
Kardashian and Davidson have been dating since shortly after her Saturday Night Live appearance last October. Her appearance on SNL arrived eight months after filing for divorce from West.
As of this report, the divorce proceedings are still underway, with Ye doing what he can to slow things down. According to TMZ, the rapper’s most recent claim is that Kim can’t prove he wrote the Instagram rants about her and Davidson.