Pete Davidson Missed SNL Premiere to Film The Suicide Squad

Fans of Saturday Night Live might have been wondering where fan-favorite cast member Pete Davidson was during last night's premiere. After all, he's not involved in any whirlwind romances with global pop stars, and he's been taking care of himself and has stated he's in a good place recently with his mental health. So why would he be absent during the first episode of the series that helped launch him into superstar status? Turns out he has a very good reason, and it's all James Gunn's fault.

Gunn posted a photo with the cast of The Suicide Squad after a screening of Joker, revealing that Davidson is on location in Atlanta as production begins on the DC Comics movie. That means Davidson likely missed the episode due to his commitments to new superhero film set to premiere in 2021.

It's not clear how extensive Davidson's role in the film is and how much time on Saturday Night Live he will miss. But given the nature of the contracts and the fact that he was still listed in the opening credits, Davidson likely has a smaller role in the film and could wrap filming for his part in The Suicide Squad in just a few short weeks.

This would fall in line with Gunn's sensibilities for the film, as the sprawling cast lends itself to characters getting killed off in spectacular fashion. After all, they're not called the Suicide Squad for nothing, and Gunn himself has made it clear that he's basing his run off of the John Ostrander and Kim Yale run of the comic books; that series ran through a lot of different characters.

Gunn recently posted on social media about the character King Shark and how he'll factor into the film, revealing new details about his plans for The Suicide Squad in the process.

"King Shark is a relatively recent member of the team. The original Squad was a group of adventurers, soldiers and scientists, who explored and battled anomalous events," Gunn wrote in response to a fan question. "Ostrander in the 80's introduced the idea of the Dirty Dozen with disposable, second rate supervillains. King Shark didn't enter the team till the 2000's. Our movie takes elements from all those timelines but is especially indebted to Ostrander (and Kim Yale)."

The Suicide Squad premieres in theaters on August 6, 2021.

We'll see when Davidson returns to Saturday Night Live as the 45th season of the comedy series continues on NBC.