Celebrity4 min(s) read
Published 16:15 22 Apr 2026 GMT
Pete Davidson has opened up about the painful process of tattoo removal and why he has chosen to go through with it.
The actor and comedian may be known for his dating history, which is full of numerous A-listers such as Ariana Grande, Kim Kardashian, and Emily Ratajkowski, among others.
But the SNL alumnus is also widely known for the ink that he sports across his body.
It's a look that he has been heavily associated with over the years, but he has revealed in recent months that he is undergoing procedures to remove them for good.
Now, in 2026, Davidson is just about tattoo-free after having over 200 separate works of skin art plastered across his arms, back, chest, stomach, and other body parts.
He's splashed out around $200,000 over the course of six years to get it done, and his new look has shocked fans on social media.
Speaking about the tattoo removal process, he explained on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon: "It's terrible,
"They burn off your skin and then you've got to do it 10 more times. I think if you can invest in any business, I think you should invest in the tattoo removal business."
Davidson revealed that they "burn off a layer of your skin," before it has to heal for around six to eight weeks, which must be protected from the sun, before doing it again, "like, 12 more times."
He then joked, "So yeah, really think about that Game of Thrones tattoo you're thinking of getting."
Many may think it's due to age, but the 32-year-old revealed: "I was a sad boy… It was a weird time…
"Everybody was getting tattoos, like, five years ago. Remember that?" he said about getting the work done in the first place.
While many say that tattoos are permanent, we know that this isn't true - all it takes is a long, painstaking process of removing them later on, which will set you back financially.
He told Today: "I got sober and I saw myself in the mirror and I was like, ‘Nah. Who that?' I was like, 'I got to change it up a little bit.'"
The new father admitted at the time that he may keep "maybe, like, two or three" of his tattoos, stating: "I'm trying to be an adult."
While Davidson may still be sporting the remnants of a Hillary Clinton portrait on his right leg, he admitted that his most embarrassing tattoo has something to do with comedic legend Dave Chappelle.
He admitted that the comedian watched one of his sets when he was up-and-coming at a comedy club when he was "about 19 or 20."
Davidson asked Chappelle: “How do you keep coming up with new stuff? I’m working on new stuff. It’s difficult.”
Chappelle, a Grammy award winner, simply replied: “Jokes come and go, but swag is forever.”
He admitted that he got "swag is forever" tattooed on his chest on Hot Ones, adding: “You know, I could have just told people he said that to me,
“I didn’t put ‘dash Chappelle.’”
He then covered it with the giant shark from Jaws, as it was "so dumb" and "humiliating."
The comedian admitted that his love for acting forced him to make the change, telling Seth Meyers on his talk show: "I honestly never thought that I would get an opportunity to act and I love it a lot,
"It takes, like, three hours — you have to get there, like, three hours earlier — to cover all your tattoos. For some reason, people in movies, they don't have them that much."
