The sad clown trope is a common theme among comedians, particularly those who embrace darker themes in their act. The King of Staten Island is a semi-biographical life of Pete Davidson, who plays Scott Carlin, an aspiring tattoo artist and stoner forced to find meaning in his life, or he’ll be kicked out of his home. Over the past two years, the Saturday Night Live star buried himself in a few controversial moments from comparing the Catholic Church to rapper R. Kelly; mocking Republican congressional candidate and vet Dan Crenshaw liking him to a “hitman in a porno movie” with his eyepatch, and his near-mental breakdown when he expressed thoughts of suicide in an Instagram post in 2018. The film provides a window into the comedian’s mind and his world.