Joe Pesci Makes Rare Acting Return for Pete Davidson’s ‘Bupkis’

Move over Martin Scorsese, as another person has finally managed to coax Joe Pesci out of retirement: Pete Davidson.

Pesci will make a rare return to acting — and in an even rarer television appearance —in Davidson’s upcoming Peacock semi-autobiographical comedy series Bupkus.

The Oscar-winning star of Goodfellas and My Cousin Vinny is set to portray Davidson’s grandfather on the show, while another mob classic icon, The Sopranos’ Edie Falco, will play a fictionalized version of Davidson’s mom.

Long thought retired, Pesci ended a nearly decade-long sojourn from the big screen in 2019 when he appeared in Scorsese’s The Irishman; since 2000, Pesci has only starred in three movies: 2006’s Robert De Niro-directed The Good Shepherd and 2010’s Love Ranch. (He did, however, reprise his Home Alone burglar Harry in a Google Assistant commercial, as well as play an exaggerated version of his big screen persona in a Snickers ad.)

Bupkus also marks Pesci’s first TV role since the early Nineties, when he made one-off appearances on The John Larroquette Show (as himself) and Tales From the Crypt.

Bupkis — which will “combine grounded storytelling with absurd elements from the unfiltered and completely original worldview for which Pete is well known,” according to Peacock — is Davidson’s first TV show since exiting Saturday Night Live at the end of Season 47. SNL’s Lorne Michaels serves as executive producer on the half-hour comedy series alongside Davidson.