Photo: Getty Images
Pete Davidson is opening up about dealing with the pressures of fame and his evolving mindset while figuring out what is most important to him in life.
In a candid interview with People, the King of Staten Island star shared his personal take on self-confidence and how he has put on a public persona that doesn't always reflect his inner life. When asked where he finds his confidence, Davidson admitted that it's not real and that "If you guys think I have confidence, I have been fooling everyone."
The Saturday Night Live alum explained how he was once so worried about how he was being perceived that his friend gave him some advice to help deal with his social anxieties.
"I was feeling really bad about... I just thought this certain celebrity didn't like me," he said. "It was a couple of years ago — and my friend, who I've been friends with forever, said, 'Hey man, no one is thinking about you like that. No one gives a f--- about you.'"
Davidson said his friend told him "everyone is just thinking about themselves" and that "the only thing people want from you is when they see you on TV, they want to laugh." The wise advisor declared that "everyone's so wrapped up in their own s---" that he shouldn't "worry" about what other people may be thinking about him.
The Bupkis actor explained how he has been shaped by major moments in his life, such as losing his dad at a young age. He was 7 years old when his dad, Scott Matthew Davidson, a firefighter in New York City, died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001.
"It's so difficult to say anything in print and not be afraid to come across the wrong way," he said. "But I had a really s----- childhood and like the worst thing that ever could have happened to me, happened to me when I was seven."
Over the years, Davidson has learned to shift his focus away from the pressures of fame and toward was matters most, his family and loved ones.
"At the end of the day, it's like your family matters and your two or three friends that you have matter. Everybody else can go f--- themselves," he said, adding, "And you don't have to put all this pressure on yourself."
Davidson said the change is a "newer" approach for him but one that has helped him navigate his public life.
"I just think who cares what people you don't even know think?" he said. "Like who the f--- cares. You don't know them."