For Pete Davidson, the worst stages of his drug abuse were so intense that he felt “high” only when he wasn’t taking substances.
The actor-comedian, 32, who’s the cover star of the new Variety issue, revealed that he bottomed out following the release his 2023 autobiographical Peacock show Bupkis.
“It was K [ketamine]. I was getting liquid and cooking it,” he told the publication. “And I would do acid and shrooms and whippets and smoke weed all day and eat pills every day. It got scary because I didn’t feel high. I felt high when I wasn’t doing it, so I was like, this is a huge problem.”
Davidson described the show, which he left even though a second season had been approved by the streamer, as "playing yourself and constantly living in your own crap.”
"I was part of the problem of what I hated the most, which was the invasiveness around my personal life. I was just lobbing it up and continuing the narrative," he said.
He eventually sought treatment at a rehab facility.
"Nothing much was going on with my career and I was like, 'This f—kin' sucks. I can't do it anymore.' And it can't be for anyone or for a job. You really have to want it, and when you're done, you're done," the entertainer explained.
Davidson, who became a first-time father in December 2025, was pushed to enter rehab at the urging of his mother, who feared that he would soon die. He no longer smokes weed, although he struggles with kicking the habit. Earlier this year, the comic held a live taping of The Pete Davidson Show, where he admitted to not remembering his early career because of being a “drug addict” at the time.
