Pete Davidson may be the most unlikely star player in SNL history

Slate

Davidson is one of the most unique cast members in Saturday Night Live history because while he's become its most talked-about player, he's not very good on the show, says Eric Harvey. "He can’t do impressions, his attempts at Digital Shorts are weak tea compared to the (admittedly high) standards set by Lonely Island, and the closest he’s come to a breakout character is his monosyllabic pool-boy homewrecker," says Harvey. "He does play a solid sideman—word to Uncle Butt—and makes his mark as a frequent in-sketch breaker." Even Davidson has admitted his SNL shortcomings, telling Variety: “I’m not good at sketch comedy. I don’t know how to do that, or write it.” "In spite of all this, he’s taken over Season 44 because of 'Weekend Update,'" says Harvey. "While last season’s SNL energy was focused on the show’s Trump-themed cold opens, this year has thus far revolved around the personal life of the show’s coolest cast member," thanks to his engagement to Ariana Grande over the summer and his more recent Dan Crenshaw controversy. Harvey notes that SNL cast members rarely become bigger than the show. And when they do, they usually leave. "All this means that for much of this season, the show—and maybe more importantly in 2018, the post-show coverage—has revolved around Pete Davidson," says Harvey. "And not Pete Davidson, the sketch performer: Pete Davidson, the persona. It’s hard to predict where Davidson might go from here; maybe by the end of the season, Davidson will join Eddie Murphy as the only current cast members to host Saturday Night Live."

ALSO:

• "Saturday Night Live has created a comedic monster": Dan Crenshaw pens a Washington Post Op-Ed explaining why he didn't seek an apology
• Read the story of Scott Matthew Davidson, Pete Davidson's firefighter father who was killed on 9/11
• SNL releases a "supercut" to say goodbye to Kate McKinnon's Jeff Sessions