The Saturday Night Live player returns to host after leaving the show last year.

Pete Davidson will return to Saturday Night Live as its first host following his eight seasons as a cast member of the comedy variety show. Joining the SNL ensemble in time for the premiere of Vintage 40 at just 20, the comedian quickly became a figurehead on the nightly satire program. Through his appearances on the Weekend Update segment, he has become known for his self-deprecating humor regarding his experience as one of the show’s younger cast members, past drug use, and most notably, his high-profile relationships. Davidson left the show after season 47 to begin development on a semi-autobiographical sitcom for Peacock called Bupkis.

A year after Pete Davidson’s departure from Saturday Night Live, Page Six reported that the comedian will return to host the live sketch comedy show on May 6. Davidson’s return will allow him to promote his upcoming series Peacock Bupkis, which he also executive produces alongside SNL creator Lorne Michaels. Davidson could also make an appearance in Weekend Update as himself and reprise one of his most beloved characters, Chad.

Davidson’s return to SNL comes as a surprise in light of his increasingly negative comments over the past year regarding certain aspects of his time on the show. Months before its official release, Davidson publicly stated that he “has to quit that show because they mock us” in an interview with Charlamagne Tha God. The comedian further criticized the show for portraying him as unintelligent, often making him the center of jokes in the cold opening and Weekend Update, the fallout of which contributed to his decision to exit the cast.

It would also seem likely that Davidson’s personal life’s growing conflation with his SNL persona has prompted him to seek some time away from the limelight. After years of high-profile relationships that made Davidson a tabloid and Twitter hot topic, public attention to the comedian peaked when he started dating mega-influencer Kim Kardashian and got into a public falling out with her ex-husband Kanye West during the final season of SNL. After expressing her discomfort and disappointment that his private affairs overshadowed his work, the heightened attention to Davidson may have influenced her decision to leave Saturday Night Live.

Davidson emphasized that, in the end, his decision to leave was driven by the feeling that he had contributed the most to the show and was ready to take on new projects following the successes of Big Time Adolescence and The King of Staten Island. Still, the actor on the rise maintains his gratitude to Lorne Michaels and his time on the show for launching his career. Davidson’s episode of Saturday Night Live airs May 6 on NBC.

Source: Page Six