2025 has been a big year for Pete Davidson so far, thanks to his starring role in the eye-piercing horror The Home, as well as co-starring in Prime Video’s current #1 action-comedy, not to mention the huge announcement that he’ll be a parent alongside girlfriend Elsie Hewitt. Granted, The Pickup is one of the more poorly reviewed comedies of the year — my own review wasn’t an exception — but Davidson said he now counts his SNL vet co-star Eddie Murphy as a source of life and career advice alongside Adam Sandler.
Talking with EW, Davidson pointed out that childhood tragedies and teenage SNL debuts served as a source of bonding for him and Eddie Murphy when The Pickup’s wheels started turning. To the point where the younger comedian can now look to the Beverly Hills Cop star for sage mentoring, similar to the relationship he has with Adam Sandler, with Davidson saying he talks to “Uncle Adam” on a weekly basis. He reflected on why both icons advice is so vital for him at this point in life, saying:
Everything that I'm going through now, they went through. So it's just really helpful to be able to talk to them. Anytime I can, I ask them for, you know, fatherly advice. Adam and Eddie have been killing for 30+ years. That's not normal, especially in comedy, to be at the top that long. And it's because they're great dudes, and they have a great regimen and a great team, and they're smart. So anything I could absorb from them, I do.
When it comes to specifics, Davidson said Adam Sandler is a strong proponent of the notion that actors should never read the reviews for their movies, while Eddie Murphy was quick to advise the Bupkis vet to keep himself clean. In his words:
Eddie was just like, 'You keep doing what you're doing, you're doing all right.' And like, you know, 'Stay clean.' You know, Eddie never really got into the party sphere, and neither did Adam. And that's, I think, why they're so on it. You know, I had my little phase, and just seeing how they are and how quick and sharp and loved and on it — they're always grounded and doing well
Pete Davidson has been candid and vocal about his struggles with substance abuse, and is therefore all the more observant when it comes to working with actors whose careers have lasted decades without them ever being known for getting shitfaced. So for the younger comic, seeing two of his idols working at the tops of their respective games is as inspirational as anything to keep his head on straight and in the game.
Clarifying that neither Sandler nor Murphy actually sat him down for an intervention or anything so dramatic, Davidson said the way they live their lives was inspiring enough even without the wise words.
They didn't necessarily outright speak to me like, 'Hey, don't do this,' but you know, in talking to them, I'm like, 'Oh yeah, their eyes are on work and family,'" he reflects. "And I think that's really important when this is their job. And they love being dads. They love family, they love hanging with their friends. And they kind of explain to me how to separate those two. Like, this is a job, but what really matters is your pals and your family.
One doesn't need to be an actor, a comedian, a parent-to-be, etc. to appreciate the general notion that jobs can be fleeting, while family and friends are forever. Even if one's life is on the opposite end of the spectrum from Pete Davidson's success, that mindset can still be extremely valuable.
Though audiences' armored truck mileage may vary, The Pickup is available to stream now with an Amazon Prime subscription.
