Pete Davidson Crashes ‘SNL’ to Make Excuses for Saudi Fest

Saturday Night Live alum Pete Davidson returned to the show for the first time in more than a year to address a recent New York Times article about the ferry he and Colin Jost bought.

The pair bought the decommissioned ferry for $280,100 in 2022, a move Jost would later call “the dumbest and least thought-through purchase I’ve ever made in my life.”

As The New York Times reported, Jost, Davidson and their business partners were sued in June for nonpayment, and the boat remains docked at a Staten Island shipyard, unused and costing the two comedians thousands in monthly docking fees.

Jost invited co-owner Davidson to the “Weekend Update” desk to address the article, with Davidson joking, “In case you’re wondering why I had to do a show in Saudi Arabia, we’re losing millions on this ferry.”

Davidson recently came under fire for performing at the controversial Riyadh Comedy Festival, a move he had previously defended by arguing that to him, it was just another gig.

“I’ve been getting a little bit of flak just because my dad died [in] 9/11,” Davidson told Theo Von. “So they’re like, ‘How could you possibly go there?’”

Davidson’s father Scott was a New York City firefighter who died on 9/11, and many of his critics referenced the belief that the Saudi government financed al Qaeda in their criticisms of Davidson’s decision to perform.

Davidson followed that with a joke suggesting Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is Colin Jost’s uncle, saying, “I understand RFK. I wouldn’t be famous without my dad dying, either. Thank god that happened. Wouldn’t trade it.”

Returning to the subject of the ferry, Davidson quipped that their ownership of the ferry was actually going very well, and “if Lorne Michaels has taught us anything, it’s that you never, ever give up. Even if everyone says the time has come and Tina Fey is ready to take over.”

Michaels, who Davidson recently said he would “do anything for,” has helmed SNL for almost 50 years since creating it in 1975. Tina Fey, a former head writer and repertory player on the show and creator of SNL parody 30 Rock, has often been suggested as a potential successor to Michaels, who is 80.

Davidson also proposed a way to turn his ferry into a financial success, by inviting the residents of Staten Island who threatened to leave New York City if Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral election aboard.

“Welcome to New Staten Island! It will have everything that makes Staten Island great: the pizza. We can’t call it the Titanic anymore because people on this ship will actually love running into ICE,” Davidson joked.

“My point is, look, the ferry, it’s fine. Sometimes the news just makes things seem worse than they are. Like how everyone was sure certain people would be exposed and ruined for being on the Epstein list. It’s 2025 and all three of us are still up here.”

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