Comedian and actor Pete Davidson is opening up about the physical toll of his six-year effort to erase nearly 200 tattoos from his body. Speaking on the red carpet at the New York City premiere of his new action movie How to Rob a Bank on Tuesday, November 10, the 32-year-old Saturday Night Live alum revealed that the ongoing laser treatments have forced him to keep his skin covered in public for the past half-year.

In an interview with E! Online alongside costar Nicholas Hoult, Davidson described the multiyear clearing process as "brutal." He noted that the transitional state of his skin between appointments has heavily dictated his wardrobe choices. "I've only been wearing sweaters for, like, six months so you don't know what's going on under there," Davidson explained, referencing the healing stages his arms, neck, and chest undergo after each session.

Despite the discomfort and a reported $200,000 price tag attached to the procedures, the King of Staten Island star maintained a lighthearted outlook on his famously inked past.

While his once heavily sleeved arms are now nearly bare skin, Davidson joked on the premiere carpet that fans shouldn't assume his body art days are completely over. "You never know, they might come back," he quipped.

The Physical Toll and Reported $200,000 Cost

Davidson first began the process of clearing his body art in 2020, aiming to remove the vast majority of the roughly 200 designs covering his torso and limbs. Over the past several years, he has been candid about the grueling medical reality of laser removal, which he has repeatedly said feels much worse than getting tattooed in the first place.

During a January 2025 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the comedian offered a vivid description of how the laser treatments affect his body. "I've been burning them off," Davidson said at the time, according to Yahoo Entertainment.

"They burn off a layer of your skin, then it has to heal for six to eight weeks. You can't get in the sunlight. And then you've got to do it, like, 12 more times."

While the comedian's remarks capture his personal experience with the rigorous recovery schedule, media accounts have differed slightly on the exact financial and physical milestones of the procedures. According to Page Six and BollywoodShaadis, Davidson has spent $200,000 to remove his ink, with BollywoodShaadis noting that each area requires at least 10 procedures. However, Enstarz reports that the $200,000 figure actually originated from an unnamed source in a January 2025 People report rather than a final invoice or new expense disclosed by Davidson during this week's premiere.

Reflecting on why he accumulated so much body art during his teens and twenties, Davidson previously referred to himself as a "sad boy" who followed trends and made impulsive choices.

He has since used his late-night television appearances to advise fans to think carefully before committing to permanent ink.

How Acting Roles and Fatherhood Shifted His Priorities

Beyond personal reflection, Davidson's decision to undergo years of painful laser sessions was largely driven by practical demands on film and television sets. As his acting career expanded beyond sketch comedy into leading film roles, his extensive ink became a logistical hurdle for production crews.

Speaking previously on Late Night With Seth Meyers, Davidson explained that he grew tired of the marathon makeup sessions required to make him camera-ready. "For some reason, people in movies, they don't have them that much," he noted, adding that he regularly had to sit in a makeup chair for three to four hours before filming just to conceal the designs on his arms, chest, and neck.

Removing the ink aligns with a broader shift in Davidson's personal life and professional focus.

In December 2025, the comedian welcomed a baby girl, Scottie, with his now-ex-girlfriend Elsie Hewitt. With his daughter now 11 months old, the Bupkis creator told E! News earlier this year that fatherhood has calmed him and reshaped his daily outlook. "My priorities have shifted in just that becoming a dad is great for so many reasons, but it just made me realize the stuff that I cared about so much don't actually matter," he shared, adding, "I'm just happy where I am."

His latest red-carpet appearance comes as he promotes How to Rob a Bank, an ensemble action film directed by David Leitch and scheduled for theatrical release on November 13. The movie follows a crew of bank robbers who broadcast their heists online, drawing pursuit from an FBI agent and a software engineer. Alongside Davidson and Hoult, the cast includes Zoë Kravitz, Anna Sawai, Rhenzy Feliz, Christian Slater, and John C.

Reilly.

Why Davidson Still Isn't Completely Done With Ink

Although some headlines have framed Davidson's goal as a complete removal of every tattoo, his own statements and public appearances show a more selective approach. While he told Jimmy Fallon in early 2025 that he was trying to "clean-slate it" and that his tattoos were "almost gone," reports from Page Six and BollywoodShaadis indicate he plans to keep two or three designs that hold deep sentimental value. Over the years, his collection famously included tributes to former partners Ariana Grande, Kim Kardashian, and Cazzie David, which have since been targeted for removal.

Even as he endures the six-to-eight-week healing cycles to clear his arms, Davidson has not completely sworn off the tattoo needle. In April 2026, during an appearance at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, he took the stage in a red T-shirt that showed substantial fading across his arms—ut also debuted a brand-new tattoo.

To honor his newborn daughter, Davidson had "Scottie" inked vertically near his temple.

What skin changes did Davidson describe between laser sessions?

Davidson explained that laser treatments burn off a layer of skin, requiring a six-to-eight-week healing window during which he must strictly avoid direct sunlight. Because of the visible stages the skin goes through while recovering between appointments, he has opted to wear long-sleeved sweaters for the past six months.

Is the $200,000 tattoo removal cost an official total?

While the $200,000 figure is widely cited across entertainment outlets as his overall spending on the multiyear process, reporting notes that the number originated from an anonymous source in early 2025 rather than an official receipt or new disclosure from Davidson himself.

How many tattoos is Pete Davidson keeping?

Out of his original collection of roughly 200 tattoos, Davidson has stated he intends to keep only two or three sentimental pieces, alongside the small vertical face tattoo honoring his daughter Scottie that he debuted in April 2026.

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