Pete Davidson's "Saturday Night Live" Hosting Gig Has Been Canceled Amid the Writers' Strike
:upscale()/2023/04/16/714/n/1922283/tmp_9j7lVC_9dbdfdfe2b3fabdd_GettyImages-1425706659.jpg)
Pete Davidson's trip back to Studio 8H has officially been shelved. NBC confirmed the news on May 2 in a statement that reads, "The previously announced 'Saturday Night Live' hosted by Pete Davidson and musical guest Lil Uzi Vert is cancelled due to the writers' strike. 'SNL' will air repeats until further notice starting Saturday, May 6."
The former "Saturday Night Live" cast member was set to become a first-time host of the sketch series on May 6. The long-running NBC show tweeted the news on April 15. Unfortunately, due to the Writers Guild of America writers' strike, "Saturday Night Live" is one of many late-night shows affected by a shutdown.
The former cast member's hosting gig was timed to the upcoming premiere of his semi-autobiographical Peacock series, "Bupkis." Davidson was part of the "SNL" cast for eight seasons until his departure in 2022. At the time, he left to pursue a career in movies. Since then, he's starred in "Meet Cute" with Kaley Cuoco, "Good Mourning," and the soon-to-be-released summer blockbuster "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts."
When Davidson exited "SNL" last May, he said an emotional goodbye to the series on Instagram. At the time, he wrote, "I got to share so much with this audience and literally grow up in front of your eyes. We were together through the good and the bad, the happiest and the darkest of times."
He went on to thank "SNL" creator Lorne Michaels (who also serves as a producer on "Bupkis") and his fellow cast members for supporting him throughout his years on the show. "I owe Lorne Michaels and everyone at 'SNL' my life," he said. "I'm so grateful and I wouldn't be here without them. I appreciate you guys always having my back and sticking up for me even when that wasn't the popular opinion. Thank you for always believing in me and sticking by my side even when it seemed comical. Thank you for teaching me life values, how to grow up and for giving me memories that will last a lifetime."