Entertainment

Pete Davidson Responded To *Those* Kate Beckinsale Rumors With An Epic Clapback

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In the past year, Pete Davidson has gone from just one of SNL's many cast members to a frequent subject of tabloid gossip, first thanks to his whirlwind engagement to Ariana Grande and now because of his new romance with Kate Beckinsale. However, he and Beckinsale's relationship has been thrust into the spotlight not just because they're both famous, but because Beckinsale is two decades older than Davidson. And while Davidson's response to he and Beckinsale's age gap on the Weekend Update portion of SNL may not have done much to quiet people's opinions, he did succeed in pointing out a massive double standard in celebrity relationships.

While the Pete Davidson of a year ago may now have known how to handle the criticism, the Pete Davidson of 2019 has enough tabloid experience to know what does and doesn't need to be said when it comes to a very public relationship. He and Beckinsale haven't officially defined their relationship in the press, but after SNL Weekend Update anchor Colin Jost asked him about his "girlfriend situation," Davidson launched into a commentary about people's fascination with their age difference. He explained that it doesn't really bother them — making a point not to refer to Beckinsale by name and only implying that the audience knows who he and Jost are talking about — but did say that he's "new to this." He went on to provide a long list of Hollywood actors known for having relationships with people much younger then them — all of whom were men.

Davidson encouraged people with questions about age gaps in relationships to reach out to "Leonardo DiCaprio, Jason Statham, Michael Douglas, Richard Gere, Jeff Goldblum, Scott Disick, Dane Cook, Derek Jeter, Bruce Willis, Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee, Alec Baldwin, Sean Penn, whoever the president of France is, Mel Gibson, Billy Joel, Mick Jagger, Sylvester Stallone, Eddie Murphy, Kelsey Grammer, Larry King, Larry King, Larry King, Rod Stewart, and Donald Trump." The implication in this long list of names is that all of these people have had partners significantly younger than them — for instance, Jeff Goldblum is 30 years older than his wife — but they aren't held up to public scrutiny in the same way that Davidson and Beckinsale are because people accept and expect men to date someone younger, but when women do the same thing, they're subject to widespread criticism and speculation from others.

Whatever is happening between Davidson and Beckinsale is, frankly, not anybody's business, but Davidson's unexpected stardom has made him a name that invites public commentary. Oddly enough, Davidson and Beckinsale may not even be the most high-profile celebrity couple amid the current SNL cast, as that title may go to Jost and his girlfriend Scarlett Johansson. However, as long as Davidson is in the public eye, so are his relationships. SNL's Weekend Update segment has become somewhat of a mini-press conference for Davidson to address his personal life, and even though he and Grande have split, it seems like that pattern will continue as he moves on.