Kim Kardashian made sure Pete Davidson had a good sense of what he was signing up when they started dating.
On Thursday's episode of The Kardashians, the SKIMS founder opened up about having the Saturday Night Live alum appear on the reality show while they were dating.
The topic came up as Kim, 42, spoke with Scott Disick and sister Khloé Kardashian about the media backlash they received for not being more vulnerable and open with their lives on screen.
Reading an article aloud, Kim shared, "Then it said, 'The rapper — now known as Ye, Kim's ex husband [Kanye West] — is [a] non-presence.' OK, what do you want me to do? If I don't talk to him, what am I gonna do? Send a camera?"
“It's not that I'm unwilling, it's that my ex didn’t want to be on a reality show," she explained, before adding in a confessional: "You can't film with someone that's not a cast member, that doesn't have aspirations of being on a reality show. Bottom line. I talk about him, I will definitely talk about my co-parenting struggles — but from my point of view."
Back in the conversation with her sister and Scott, Kim pointed out how difficult it could be in the public eye while starting a new relationship with someone.
"Even in the dating conversation, once there's a story about you, you start to believe the hype that you're together and [it's like], 'Oh my God, and this hot-and-heavy, and it's everywhere and everyone thinks you're practically getting married in a week,'" Kim explained.
"It's hard when you start dating someone and you're on a reality show, so Pete and I had that conversation right away," she continued. "You obviously know what you're getting yourself into. But then the fans were like, 'Pete's not on the show!' and I was like, 'We said that from the start, it's not what he does.' Then I opened up, then I had him on the show. I talked about every last thing, what else do you want?"
Kim added in a confessional: "I'm not gonna meet someone and be like, 'Pause! Before we really get to a place, will you be on my show?' And he was still on, guys! He was on at what level he was comfortable with."
Khloé, 38, agreed with her sister, pointing out, "If I'm newly dating someone, I'm not gonna have them on the show ... that's weird."
Kim and Pete, 29, began dating in fall 2021 after the reality star's hosting debut on SNL. The romance came months after Kim filed for divorce from Kanye, 45, following six years of marriage.
As Kim and Pete's relationship got more serious, Kanye hurled several attacks at the couple both online and in the press, including in a video for his single "Eazy," in which the rapper kidnapped, tied up and buried a claymation version of Pete.
The pair ultimately split in August 2022 after nine months. Around that time, a source told outlet that Pete "has been in trauma therapy in large part" due to Kanye's threatening posts.
"The attention and negativity coming from Kanye and his antics is a trigger for [Pete], and he's had to seek out help," the source said at the time.
The comedian has since made light of the situation, joking in one of his standup routines about how he had a "really weird year" and touching upon all the insults the rapper made towards him. Pete and Kim have also remained friendly, even reuniting at the 2023 Met Gala in early May.
In last week's episode, Kim admitted she felt "a lot of guilt" after their split since Pete "went through a lot because of my relationship [with Kanye]."
Despite the differing opinions from Kardashians viewers, the sisters doubled down on their perspective later on in their chat.
Khloé noted that she has no regrets about the way she carries herself on the reality series, saying, "I'll tell you something: I have no guilt cause I show so much about my life, and I am open and I do it in a very vulnerable, good way."
In a confessional, Kim suggested that fans' perspectives may be coming from a comparison standpoint to their original show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
"When we started Keeping Up, all of us were 20 years old and had no kids, and no lives and this was our only job and only career. There wasn't even social media," she said. "Now I know what it's like when people say, 'I want the old artist back!' Like, no, people grow and evolve."
Scott, 40, then asked if they would ever consider stepping away from the show "in a perfect world" scenario. Kim was quick to respond, saying, "No, we love filming and we love our show."
"I just love doing this show because I think that I look at it as an opportunity to help other people with what they’re going through. I mean, the amount of letters that I get ... I love being able to show people a glimpse of what we do on a daily basis."
"I just think that our show is what made us. I'll always want to give it my all, I'll always want to film and be a part of it and give it everything that I can," she added.
New episodes of The Kardashians drop Thursdays at 12 a.m. ET/9 p.m. PT on Hulu.
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