Pete Davidson Remembers His First 'SNL' Sketch That Failed, and Jim Carrey Tried to Rescue It

Pete Davidson Recalls His First "Bombed" Saturday Night Live Sketch

Pete Davidson, the comedian known for his work on Saturday Night Live and his stand-up specials, recently shared a story from his early days on the iconic show. In an episode of Hot Ones, he reflected on his first real sketch, which did not go as planned.

Davidson, now 31, was excited to star alongside Jim Carrey in a sketch that was supposed to be a highlight of the show. However, the performance ended up being one of the most memorable — albeit not in a positive way.

“I was so excited because he’s Jim Carrey, one of the legends,” Davidson said. “We wrote this sketch where it’s like a zombie apocalypse.”

The sketch, titled Zombie Apocalypse High School, had Davidson playing the role of a zombie son to Carrey’s character, who was not a zombie. The idea was to create a comedic scenario where the two characters interacted in a chaotic setting. Unfortunately, the audience didn’t find it funny.

“The sketch bombed to high heavens. And it’s a long one, like it’s six minutes,” Davidson recalled. “I’m eating d---. And the only thing that made anyone laugh, there was like one scene, one part where I was supposed to, like, try to attack Jim and he hits me with a bat and that got a pop.”

Carrey, known for his improvisational skills, tried to salvage the situation by continuing to hit Davidson with a prop NERF bat. “Jim is a comic, so he knows if that works… so the rest of the sketch he just keeps wailing on me with this NERF bat, and then it started to hurt.”

Davidson, still in character as a zombie, eventually reacted. “At one point, as a zombie, I went ‘Argh, no more.’”

Despite the attempt to recover the scene, the overall performance left a negative impression on Davidson. “It’s online if you want to watch a 20-year-old crumble with his idol,” he added.

The sketch was part of SNL’s 40th season in 2014, when Jim Carrey hosted the episode with musical guest Iggy Azalea. At the time, Davidson was a cast member of the show, appearing for eight seasons until 2022.

He later made a special appearance during the show’s 50th anniversary celebration, reprising his infamous Chad character in a digital skit alongside original cast member Laraine Newman.

In February 2025, Davidson also reflected on his SNL audition during an episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers. He admitted that he was “forced” to watch the episode for Peacock’s SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night docuseries. “I teared up a little bit because, you know, I’m like 20 there, so it’s before all the bad stuff happened.”

Davidson has continued to make waves in the entertainment industry, including the recent release of his horror movie The Home. His journey from a struggling comedian to a household name has been marked by both triumphs and setbacks, but his honesty about past failures adds depth to his story.