Earlier this month, it was reported that Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson was being considered to be the next celebrity headed to space with Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and now, those reports have become a reality. On Monday, Blue Origin confirmed (via The Hollywood Reporter) that Davidson will among the crew members for the commercial spaceflight company’s upcoming mission set to launch from Texas on March 23rd. The flight will be the fourth manned mission for Blue Origin’s New Shepard program and 20th mission overall.
In addition to Davidson, other crew members for the scheduled March 23rd flight include angel investor and former Party America CEO Marty Allen, SpaceKids Global Founder Sharon Hagle and her husband, Tricor International CEO Marc Hagle, entrepreneur Jim Kitchen, and former FAA associate administrator and Commercial Space Technologies founder George Nield. Davidson will be the latest celebrity crew member for a Blue Origin flight. Bezos himself took part in the first flight back in July while Star Trek legend William Shatner followed in October and Good Morning America anchor Michael Strahan flew in December. The December flight also carried with it a “Live long and prosper” pendant belonging to Leonard Nimoy’s daughter, Julie, in a tribute to Nimoy. As for what passengers on the upcoming Blue Origin flight will carry with them, each crew member will carry with them a postcard to space on behalf of Blue Origin’s Club for the Future foundation.
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While Davidson is best known as a star of Saturday Night Live, he had a small role in last year’s The Suicide Squad as Blackguard and has other projects on the horizon as well, including the upcoming thriller, The Home from The Purge creator James DeMonaco. In The Home, Davidson will play “Max, a troubled man who starts working at a retirement home and realizes its residents and caretakers harbor sinister secrets. As he investigates the building and its forbidden fourth floor, he starts to uncover connections to his own past and upbringing as a foster child.”
“We’re excited to be backing DeMonaco’s brilliant vision,” producer Bill Block said when first announcing Davidson’s deal. “James’ The Purge horror franchise has grossed over $450 million at the worldwide box office. With his masterful storytelling abilities and Pete’s versatility as an actor, this film will put audiences everywhere on the edge of their seats.”
The next Blue Origin mission is expected to launch from the company’s Texas spaceport on March 23rd.
