Pete Davidson is leaving Studio 8H.
The comedian is poised to sign off for good from NBC’s Saturday Night Live, where he has been a staple for the past eight seasons after joining the Lorne Michaels sketch comedy show as one of its youngest-ever cast members at the age of 20.
Davidson’s exit is expected to come this weekend, during SNL’s season 47 finale that is hosted by Natasha Lyonne (Russian Doll) and featuring musical guest Japanese Breakfast.
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The news comes days after Davidson took graced the stage at NBCUniversal’s upfront presentation to Madison Avenue ad buyers to introduce his new Peacock comedy, Bupkis. The series, inspired by his life, is exec produced by Michaels and the SNL mastermind’s NBCUniversal-based Broadway Video.
Reps for NBC and Saturday Night Live did not immediately respond to THR’s request for comment. This post will be updated when/if there is a response.
SNL has always cycled through top talent during its long run as many of its breakout stars moved on to other projects. In recent years, however, Michaels has shown an increased willingness to allow time away from the sketch comedy for his in-demand stars to do other projects — many of which he also produces.
Davidson, who joined SNL in season 20 as a relative unknown, has become one of its biggest stars and an internet favorite. (He’s currently dating Kim Kardashian, after the social media star and influencer hosted SNL.) Davidson has used his status as an SNL favorite to grow his career with the likes of the semi-autobiographical feature The King of Staten Island.
SNL typically confirms cast departures and new additions during the summer or early fall ahead of its upcoming seasons. In recent years, the status of stars Kate McKinnon, Kenan Thompson, Cecily Strong and Aidy Bryant have all been under the microscope. All have continued to remain with the series, though it’s unclear if any will follow Davidson out the door. It’s worth noting that Thompson, SNL’s longest-tenured cast member, recently teamed with Michaels on NBC’s Kenan, which was just canceled after a couple seasons. Bryant, too, worked with Michaels on Hulu’s recently concluded Shrill, while the SNL boss also exec produces Strong’s Apple comedy Schmigadoon.
THR corporate sibling Variety was first to report the news.
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
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Tagged: Culture, entertainment blog, music blog, Pete Davidson, Saturday Night Live, SNL, TV/Film