Pete Davidson reveals how much SNL cast actually get paid

You'd think that, being the biggest television series in the United States, Saturday Night Live stars would bag a pretty penny for their stints on-screen.

Apparently, however, according to much-loved funny-man Pete Davidson, the cast get paid considerably less than you might think, to such an extent that he's often been left disappointed by the value written on his pay cheque.

Pete was first hired for the NBC series in 2014 (Will Heath/NBC via Getty Images)

Pete was hired by NBC to appear on the meme-worthy sketch show back in 2014 aged just 20, after having previously worked on comedy series like Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Guy Code, and Wild 'n Out.

In the eight years that followed, his level of fame would skyrocket, with several of his characters - specifically, laid-back pool boy Chad - becoming firm favourites with fans.

His time on the show also earned him a handful of viral moments, including he and Timothee Chalamet's Rap Roundtable performance of 'Yeet Yeet Skirt', and his comedic rendition of 'I'm Just Pete', which served as a parody of Ryan Gosling's already-hilarious Barbie number.

The huge-name stars that Pete dated publicly during his rise to fame pay have also paid a part in his colossal success.

In 2018, he and then-fiancé Ariana Grande hosted the show together, and in 2023, he and then-girlfriend Kim Kardashian performed an Aladdin-style sketch together, where they were seen locking lips on a magical carpet ride.

Davidson is one of the cast's most successful stars (Rosalind O'Connor/NBC via Getty Images)

Despite taking a partial step back from the series in 2022 to take on other professional projects, Pete, now 31, is still widely considered one of SNL's most successful castmates.

You can only imagine the shock from fans, therefore, when, speaking to press earlier this week, he alleged that he didn't receive particularly impressive payments for the on-screen gig.

In a video round-up for New York magazine, he and his colleagues were each asked what their 'biggest splurge' was when they received their first pay cheque.

Repeating the question firstly, Pete revealed: "Do you guys know what they pay us? It’s, like, three grand an episode."

As if to imply that this was some sort of small amount per episode, he jokingly added: "I think I got dinner."

Being that each annual series of SNL tends to be around 18 to 22 episodes long, by Pete's estimation, a cast member that appears in every single episode will bring home somewhere between $54,000 and $66,000 per year.

Several cast-mated were asked about their pay (Rosalind O'Connor/NBC via Getty Images)

And that's on top of their other projects - not a bad wage, I'd say.

In the now-viral video, several other cast members went on to reveal what they'd purchased after first getting paid.

James Austin Johnson claimed he'd bought 'the most uncomfortable West Elm couch of all time' - adding 'it’s, like, made of bricks' - while Julia Louis-Dreyfus revealed she 'bought a pair of shoes that were out of [her] budget'.