Pete Davidson is fond of his famous exes, from Ariana Grande to Kim Kardashian.
The "Saturday Night Live" alum, 32, opened up about his former highly publicized relationship
with the "Kardashians" star, 45, in a Sept. 30 interview with Variety. He revealed that one of the things he loved about "Kim and that whole family" is how honest they were from the jump about the potential for never-ending scrutiny he could face.He joked that he is one of the "few and proud" survivors who have dated Kardashians, quipping "We’re like the Marines."
"Look, man, that’s a really tough atmosphere if you’re not game. One of the things I love about Kim and that whole family is they’re like, ‘This is what we do,'" he said. "I found that very attractive and mature."
Davidson met the Skims founder on "Saturday Night Live," sharing a kiss as Disney's Aladdin and Jasmine in an October 2021 sketch and dating shortly thereafter. The couple dated just shy of a year, calling it quits in August 2022 amid scheduling conflicts and social media attacks from Kardashian's ex-husband Ye.
"And I was never subjected to anything I didn’t want to be a part of," Davidson said of his relationship with Kardashian. "She was super respectful of all of it, but the craze of that lifestyle — being followed everywhere, having security and looking over your shoulder — for a guy with mental stuff, and at the time drug problems, was a little too much for me."
The comedian said that he and Kardashian remain on good terms: "I have a lot of love for her, and I knew what I was getting into."
Pete Davidson condemns remarks on Ariana Grande's body
Davidson feels similarly about Grande, describing her as a "cool, immensely talented and an awesome girl." He and the "Thank U, Next" singer dated and were briefly engaged for less than five months in 2018.
However, he's not a fan of all the vitriol and body commentary she's been subjected to, as of late, which he condemned.
"I don’t like it at all. It’s not cool. She’s a really strong person — I’ve witnessed it — and I don’t understand it. She knows how to handle this stuff though. She’s been around. So she’ll be OK," he added.
Pete Davidson addresses the 'Ye' of it all
Davidson said he was "tripped out" by the extent of Ye's wrath.
Kardashian was in the middle of finalizing her divorce with the "Famous" rapper, formerly known as Kanye West, when she began seeing Davidson. Kardashian and Ye share four kids: North, Psalm, Chicago and Saint.
"I was super open about mental stuff — everyone knows this about me — and it’s like he was [saying], 'Kill yourself.' And he did push me," Davidson said.
USA TODAY has reached out to Ye for comment.
Davidson, who’s half-Jewish, chuckled when he was asked if he thinks he’s the reason why Ye started going on remarks widely labeled as antisemitic. In a January ad placed in The Wall Street Journal, the hip-hop mogul apologized to the Jewish community, and in a December 2023 Instagram post, Ye said that he "deeply regret[ted] any pain I may have caused."
"What people don’t understand about that dude — and I’m not one-one-millionth as talented or influential or powerful as that dude, but I have dealt with a fraction of what he’s had to deal with public-wise — is that’ll do it," Davidson said. "He’s also lost a parent and has mental stuff, and I don’t know how he deals with it or who he has around him. "
Davidson said he relates to having many people wanting to be his friend and said when people are "constantly pushing and provoking you and not showing you love, you want to burn it all." He added that "there’s zero way he really feels like that."
Davidson joked that he did Kardashian a favor by being Ye's punching bag: "I like to think I got that one out of the way for her because whoever that guy was going to be was gonna get it. I cleared the path for her to get back into the dating pool."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pete Davidson reveals what he admires most about ex Kim Kardashian
