Pete Davidson made a rare appearance during this weekend’s episode of Saturday Night Live, although he didn’t appear in person for the show. The longtime SNL cast member popped up in a music video recorded ahead of the live episode, which also featured castmate Chris Redd and musical guest Gunna.
He’d been away from the sketch comedy show since earlier this year, with some initially believing it was due to rapper Kanye West’s feud with him over Kim Kardashian. That wasn’t the case, though, as Davidson was away filming for a movie.
Davidson’s recent SNL appearance didn’t aim at any of the recent Kanye drama, but instead poked fun at the length of many movies that come out these days, even paying homage to Ernest Goes To Camp and other Ernest movies.
Pete Davidson featured in Saturday Night Live video
While Pete Davidson has been busy filming for an upcoming horror movie called The Home, it appears he found some time to link up with rapper Gunna and castmate Chris Redd for a “Short-A** Movies” music video.
The hip-hop song features Davidson, Redd, and Gunna as they criticize movies being so long these days, even poking fun at the three-hour runtime for The Batman, along with other lengthy films.
At the start of the video, Davidson appears on screen, sitting down to watch a movie on one of the many streaming services available.
“Found a flick, about to pick it. But right before I click it. I look down right below the line, and that’s when I see the runtime. 3 hours 47 minutes? Bro, you must be crazy. No thanks, I’m gonna watch a short-a** movie like Driving Miss Daisy,” Davidson raps in part of the song.
Gunna raps about some of the short movie choices one could watch, such as “Bad Moms, The Lion King, and all three Austin Powers.”
“I heard The Batman was great. So I went to a theater and saw it. I pissed my pants twice that s**t was longer than the hobbit,” Davidson raps.
Castmate Chris Redd also joins in the rap song and video before a special guest appearance from actor and comedian Simon Rex. The 47-year-old pops up as rapper “G-Nasty” who delivers part of the song where he hilariously lists off the catalog of Ernest movies as some excellent short films to watch.
While Davidson’s appearance during Saturday Night Live didn’t mention anything related to Kanye, Davidson joked about himself and his critically-acclaimed movie.
“How long was The King of Staten Island?” Rex asks Davidson toward the end of the video.
“Uh it was like- It was like 2 hours and 17 minutes, but we needed all those minutes,” Davidson replied before the song continued.
Davidson popped up for the music video but was absent from the rest of the show, including SNL poking fun at Will Smith and Chris Rock from last Sunday’s Oscars.
Viewers react to Davidson’s appearance in SNL video
Once the music video hit Saturday Night Live’s YouTube channel, it started to gain traction, generating over 100,000 views and 700-plus comments as of this report. Many people brought up their favorite longer films, while others praised Davidson and the video’s cast.
“Love to see Pete still out here with a smile on his face despite all the Kanye hate,” one YouTube commenter said.
Another presented the idea of how Davidson came up with the idea for the music video, suggesting it was a “boys’ night w/ Scott Disick and others.”
“Was gonna write ‘Kanye’s been real quiet since Pete dropped this’ but I don’t think that’s something Kanye is capable of,” another commenter said.
Kanye West has been quiet on social media ever since he received a 24-hour ban from Instagram several weeks ago. The outspoken rapper had shared posts attacking or mocking Davidson as well as comedians D.L. Hughley and The Daily Show host Trevor Noah.
In particular, West’s post about Noah included an offensive slur, resulting in his suspension from the social media platform. It also may have resulted in his ban from performing at the Grammys, as he was removed as a performer soon after the Instagram suspension.
Meanwhile, all signs seem to indicate that Davidson is unfazed by Kanye’s attacks, and enjoying his life, including his relationship with Kanye’s ex-wife, Kim Kardashian.