"Bupkis": Fact vs. Fiction!

Bupkis is a new comedy series from Universal Television and Broadway Video on Peacock that is described as a “heightened fictionalized version of Pete Davidson’s life.” When creating the show, Davidson and co-writers Judah Miller and Dave Sirus used real events from the comedian’s life mixed in with made-up scenarios that would play well on screen. The end result is a hilarious, heartfelt, and entertaining show, but which parts did Davidson actually live through, and which were concocted in the writers room?

Below we analyze 5 parts of "Bupkis" that actually happened! (Warning: Spoilers Ahead!)

1. Davidson Does Live in His Mom’s Basement

A major part of the show revolves around Davidson’s relationship with his mother, a relationship that is helped (and hurt) by the fact that they live together, with Pete taking over the basement of his mother's house. Davidson actually does live in his mother's basement, but he makes it very clear that he is not a freeloader. In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel, Davidson explains how “it’s a joint effort, we got a house together.” This is a rather endearing fact about the comedian, and also plays a central role in the plot, such as when he… uh… well, just go watch the first scene...

2. Davidson Did Film A War Movie

The 6th episode of "Bupkis" revolves around Davidson shooting a war movie in a small village in Canada. Davidson did actually star in a movie about the Vietnam War with Tom Hardy called The Things They Carried, an adaptation of the popular book of the same name and covers the lives of several young men on the front-lines of the war. Shooting began in Thailand in early 2021 and the film is currently in post-production. We can’t wait for the film, and we sure hope Davidson had a better time in real life than his character in “Bupkis” did! 

3. Davidson Does Want a Kid!

The 5th episode of "Bupkis" revolves around the fact that Pete is done with his fling life and wants to move into fatherhood. In the show, he describes how being a father is “all I’ve ever wanted since [he] was little” and feels like it’s time. Pete then immediately agrees to babysit a child whom he picks up in a hot-boxed Cadillac full of his friends and then proceeds to lose at an amusement park, but dammit he’s ready! In real life, Davidson hasn’t lost a child at an amusement park (that we know of), but he truly does want to be a father. In an interview with Kevin Hart, Davidson explains how “I want to have a kid. It’s, like, my dream.” As of right now, Davidson doesn’t have a child, but we’ll see what happens with Season 2.

4. Davidson Did Perform at a Climate Change Conference with Al Gore

In the 3rd episode, Pete is a special guest at a climate change conference with former vice-president Al Gore, one of the world’s leading climate change activists. In the scene, Pete is briefly thrown off by an ugly picture being put up behind him during his performance while he is on stage with Gore, who is actually played by himself. In real-life, there was no photo mishap or issues, but Davidson did share the stage with Gore at the 2019 Climate Reality Leadership Corps training in Atlanta. Davidson worked with Gore to translate current climate issues into lingo that a younger audience can understand. For example, Gore describes how several cities recorded the hottest temperatures of all time last year, to which Davidson explained, “All those Supreme hoodies you bought? USELESS!” While we never got to see any of Davidson’s heat-related jokes on "Bupkis", you can watch his entire set with Gore below!

5. There Was a Rumor that Davidson Died

Right before Pete graced the stage with the former VP in "Bupkis", he was dealing with an internet troll who spread a rumor that he died. Headlines were blowing up that the comedian was dead at age 29 after being involved in a fatal car crash. This was completely fabricated, as the comedian was simply strutting around his hotel, but it was enough to prompt hundreds of terrified texts and to scare the daylights out of his mother. In reality, Davidson did have to deal with a rumor that he died after Kanye West posted a fake news headline in 2022 claiming that the comedian had passed. Directly after Davidson and Kim Kardashian split, the rapper posted a fakeNew York Times article stating “SKETE DAVIDSON DEAD AT AGE 28”. This was an attack on the comic after he dated West’s ex-wife and sparked a string of online rumors that Pete had actually died. This was all quickly resolved, but it made enough of an impact to be mentioned in the show.

Season 1 of "Bupkis" is currently streaming on Peacock!