Short answer
- There is no public confirmation that Pete Davidson has veneers. No dental record for him is public, no treating dentist has described his treatment, and Davidson himself has never named a specific procedure. What he has done, on the record, is joke about his teeth. Entertainment reporting records that he announced on Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update in 2018 that he had got "new teeth," without saying what that meant, and in a 2025 Hot Ones interview he recalled that Lorne Michaels had casually told him as a young cast member that he should get new teeth. Neither remark names veneers, bonding, whitening, orthodontics, or any other treatment. His smile does look different from earlier in his career. Photo comparisons note that a gap between his front teeth, visible in earlier appearances, is no longer visible, and that his teeth look brighter and more even. That visible change is consistent with veneers. It is also consistent with whitening, bonding, orthodontic movement, a professional cleaning, and the ordinary effects of lighting and camera work. Because more than one ordinary explanation fits the same photographs, the photographs cannot settle the question, and this article does not pretend otherwise. The useful part of the question is the general one underneath it. The rest of this article explains what veneers actually are, how they differ from whitening, bonding, crowns and orthodontics, why placing them is usually not reversible, who they may suit and who should wait, how long they last, and what a careful consultation covers. It is general information only, not a diagnosis of Pete Davidson or of any reader, and not a treatment plan. Only a dentist who has examined your teeth can advise on your own case.
What Pete Davidson Has Actually Said About His Teeth
The documented record about Davidson and dentistry is short, and setting it out exactly shows the gap between a person’s own words and the confident claims built on top of them.
First, the advice story. In his 2025 Hot Ones appearance, Davidson was asked whether Lorne Michaels, the creator of Saturday Night Live, had given him advice when he joined the cast at age 20. Davidson recalled that Michaels casually told him, “you should get new teeth,” adding, in his recollection, that Amy had done it and looked great. It is not a treatment record: it does not say Davidson followed the advice, or what any dentist did.
Second, the on air joke. Reporting by TheThings, published in December 2021, records that Davidson went on Weekend Update in 2018 and announced that he got “new teeth,” and notes in the same report that Davidson has never spelled out what the change involved. It does not identify a procedure: “new teeth” could just as easily be comic shorthand for whitening, bonding, straightening, or a combination.
Third, a documented routine procedure. In July 2018, Bustle reported that Davidson had wisdom teeth surgery, with Ariana Grande, his partner at the time, posting photos of him recovering. Wisdom tooth removal is ordinary oral surgery, not cosmetic dentistry, and it does not change how front teeth look. It is included because it shows what a documented dental event looks like: reported at the time, from the couple’s own posts, as a specific procedure. Nothing comparable exists for veneers.
Fourth, a case where photo speculation was wrong. In early 2022, a photograph of Davidson holding John Mulaney’s baby son circulated, prompting speculation about a chipped front tooth. TMZ reported, in coverage summarized by TheThings in March 2022, that the chipped tooth was fake, made for a film role. A visible dental defect in a photograph turned out to be makeup for a role.
Taken together, the confirmed record supports a narrow statement: Davidson’s smile changed during his years on Saturday Night Live, he has joked about getting new teeth, and he has never publicly confirmed veneers or any other specific cosmetic procedure. Everything beyond that is inference, and inference from photographs is speculation.
What Is Not Confirmed
For the avoidance of doubt, none of the following has been confirmed by Davidson or by any treating clinician in reporting verified for this article: that he has porcelain or composite veneers or bonding; how many teeth, if any, have been treated; what material any restoration is made from; the name of any treating dentist or clinic; what any treatment cost; or when any specific procedure took place. Dental clinic marketing pages that state these details as fact, including pages that name materials, tooth counts and timelines based on photographs, go beyond the available evidence. This article treats all such claims as unconfirmed speculation.
The same discipline applies across this celebrity veneer cluster. Our companion article on Selena Gomez veneers, myths versus facts separates what is confirmed there from what is not, and reaches the same kind of answer for the same reason: a public figure’s own statement or records can confirm treatment, and photographs cannot. Coverage of Milly Alcock’s teeth follows the same pattern, with smile transformation talk running well ahead of anything the person has confirmed.
What People Notice When They Compare Older and Newer Photos
The comparisons are easy to describe. In earlier images, from his first Saturday Night Live seasons, Davidson’s front teeth show a noticeable gap between the two upper central teeth, some unevenness, and a less bright shade. In more recent images, the gap is not visible, the front teeth look more even, and the shade looks brighter. Reporting by TheThings describes the same pattern, noting the earlier gap and yellower shade, and citing Insider on the gap closing.
That is a legitimate observation about appearance. The mistake is the next step: converting it into a claim about treatment. A closed gap can result from orthodontic movement, bonding added to the front teeth, veneers made slightly wider, or a combination. A brighter shade can result from whitening, a professional cleaning, veneers, or lighting. More even edges can result from bonding, veneers, minor reshaping, or a different smile in a different photograph. Each visible change has several plausible causes, and a photograph cannot rank them.
Why Photographs Cannot Prove Dental Treatment
Photographs are weak evidence, for several reasons.
Lighting changes teeth. Flash, studio lighting and daylight render color and surface differently, and bright light makes teeth look whiter and flatter. Professionally lit television images are not comparable with early snapshots, so a pair may be comparing lighting rigs as much as teeth. Filters, retouching and compression also smooth edges, lift brightness and soften surface texture.
Angle and expression matter too. Lens distance alters apparent size and spacing, camera angle alters how much of each tooth shows, and a wider smile changes which teeth are visible and how edges line up. Makeup and lip color also change how white teeth appear. The same untreated smile can look noticeably different minutes apart.
Smiles also change for ordinary clinical reasons: cleaning, whitening, bonding, orthodontic treatment, and repair of a single chip all alter appearance over years. The 2022 chipped tooth episode makes the complementary point: even apparent damage can be a film prop.
The honest ceiling is suggest: a genuine shape change that whitening alone cannot explain can suggest restorative work in general terms, not proof of a specific procedure, material, date or tooth count.
What a Dentist Can Tell That a Photograph Cannot
A clinical examination answers questions a photograph cannot. In person, a dentist can feel the margin where a restoration meets the tooth, check surface texture and translucency under controlled light, take radiographs of roots and bone, test the bite, and review treatment records. Those records, not images, document veneers.
Even in person, good work is hard to spot: modern porcelain mimics natural enamel well. Patterns cited from photographs, such as unusual uniformity or a flat looking shade, are at most prompts for clinical checks. A confident diagnosis from social media images, by someone who has never examined the person, is commentary, not a clinical finding.
What Veneers Actually Are
A veneer is a thin covering fitted over the front surface of a tooth to change how that tooth looks. The American Dental Association’s MouthHealthy guidance describes veneers as custom made, natural looking coverings for teeth whose appearance is affected by chips, breaks, staining, or a crooked or irregular shape, and that can also mask gaps in a smile. A veneer covers only the front of the tooth, unlike a crown, which covers the entire tooth and is used mainly to restore a tooth badly damaged by decay or injury.
Veneers are cosmetic. They camouflage how a tooth looks; they do not treat decay, gum disease or infection, they do not strengthen a weakened tooth, and they do not move teeth.
Porcelain veneers
A porcelain veneer is a thin shell of dental ceramic, custom made in a laboratory to fit one prepared tooth. The Journal of the American Dental Association patient guide describes the usual sequence. First, a small amount of enamel is taken from the tooth’s front and sides, making room for the shell so the finished tooth does not look bulky. An impression or scan is taken, the shade is chosen, and the laboratory makes the veneer over several days; the patient may wear a temporary covering in the meantime. At the fitting visit, the dentist checks the fit, adjusts as needed, cleans the tooth, and bonds the veneer in place with dental cement. Porcelain is strong, long lasting and natural looking, and resists staining well. MouthHealthy notes it tends to be the more expensive of the two main options.
Composite veneers
A composite veneer is made from tooth colored filling material, the same resin used for dental bonding, sculpted directly on the tooth by the dentist. The ADA patient guide notes that composite veneers are generally placed in one appointment: the tooth is prepared or reshaped, the material is bonded and shaped, a special light hardens it, and the surface is polished to look natural. MouthHealthy adds that composite usually requires less enamel removal and fewer visits, and is easier to fix if damaged, but is not as resistant to stain or wear as porcelain.
Minimal prep and no prep veneers
Thinner porcelain designs need less enamel removal than traditional veneers, and are sometimes marketed as no prep or no drill. Cleveland Clinic makes an important qualification: even no prep veneers still require some enamel removal, and are not right for everyone. A tooth that is dark, strongly rotated or in need of a large shape change may have no room for an added layer without looking bulky. The question is not whether a brand promises no drilling, but how much enamel your own case would need removed.
Veneers, Whitening, Bonding, Crowns and Orthodontics Are Different Treatments
Much confusion comes from treating five different procedures as interchangeable routes to a better smile. They solve different problems, and the differences explain why a photograph cannot identify which one a person had: several produce overlapping visible results.
Whitening changes color only
Whitening lightens the color of natural enamel. The ADA MouthHealthy whitening guidance explains that whitening products use bleaches such as hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide to break stains into smaller pieces. Whitening cannot change a tooth’s shape, size, length or position, and it does not work on veneers, crowns or fillings. It is the least invasive option when color is the only concern. Sensitivity is common, usually temporary, and results fade.
Bonding adds small amounts of resin
Bonding applies tooth colored resin directly to a tooth to repair a small chip, close a small gap, or add a little length or shape, often in a single visit with little or no enamel removal. The resin stains and chips more readily than porcelain, so it generally needs repair or replacement sooner, and it suits a change across many teeth, or a tooth under heavy biting force, less well.
Orthodontics moves teeth
Braces and clear aligners move teeth into new positions over months. They address crowding, spacing and bite relationships that no surface covering can fix, because a veneer changes a tooth’s front face, not where it sits in the jaw. A gap between front teeth, of the kind visible in Davidson’s earlier photographs, is exactly the sort of change orthodontics can produce alone, which is one more reason a closed gap does not identify veneers.
Crowns cover the whole tooth
A crown covers the entire visible tooth. Its main purpose is restorative: to protect and rebuild a tooth weakened by decay, a large filling, a crack or root canal treatment. Replacing the whole visible surface also changes how the tooth looks. A tooth that needs a crown for strength is not a veneer case, and a veneer is no substitute on a badly damaged tooth.
Veneers change several things at once
A porcelain veneer can change color, shape, size and length together, and can mask a small gap, which is why it is offered for broader smile changes. Many people veneer only the teeth that show when smiling, often the upper front six to eight. The trade is preparation, covered below.
Who May Be a Candidate, and Who Should Wait
Veneers may suit a person whose teeth and gums are healthy, who wants to address several visible concerns (color whitening cannot lift, worn or chipped edges, small gaps, uneven shape), has enough sound enamel to bond to, and has a bite that will not overload thin ceramic shells. Good candidacy is a clinical judgment, made after examining gum health, tooth structure, existing fillings, sensitivity and bite. It cannot be reached from a selfie, your own or a celebrity’s.
Veneers are generally the wrong first step where there is active gum disease or untreated decay: the ADA guidance is direct that decay or gum disease must be treated first, and that fitting veneers onto teeth that are not healthy can make existing problems worse. They are also a poor fit where a tooth is heavily filled or cracked and needs a crown instead, where major crowding or a bite problem needs orthodontics first, or where heavy clenching or grinding has no management plan, because the ADA lists clenching, grinding and a deep overbite as reasons veneers may not be a good choice.
One further limit matters for a gap or a missing tooth: a veneer needs a tooth to bond to, so it cannot replace a missing tooth. Our guide to veneers with missing teeth compares the replacement options, implants, bridges and partial dentures, and explains where veneers on the remaining teeth fit into a combined plan. Our article on Jo Koy’s teeth applies the same confirmed versus unconfirmed test to a specific comedian’s smile.
How Long Veneers Last, and How to Care for Them
Longevity figures are planning ranges, not guarantees. They depend on the material, bite forces, grinding habits, oral hygiene, and how well the veneers were made and bonded.
Cleveland Clinic gives an average lifespan of about 10 to 15 years with proper care. A systematic review of porcelain laminate veneer studies, published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine in 2021, estimated a 10 year survival rate of about 95.5 percent across more than 6,000 veneers, with fracture the most common complication, followed by the veneer coming loose. Composite veneers and bonding sit lower, commonly needing repair or replacement within roughly five to eight years, because resin wears and stains more readily than porcelain.
Replacement is part of the commitment. A veneer placed in a person’s twenties will likely be replaced several times across a lifetime, and each replacement usually involves further preparation of a tooth that has already lost enamel.
Daily care is ordinary care, plus a few veneer specific cautions from the ADA guidance. Brush twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, clean between the teeth daily, and keep regular dental visits: the natural tooth under and around a veneer can still decay. Avoid biting fingernails and chewing hard objects or foods such as ice and pencils. Wear a mouthguard for sports. Be cautious with coffee, tea and red wine, which can stain the natural teeth around veneers even though porcelain itself resists stain. If your bite feels wrong after placement, or a veneer chips or loosens, tell your dentist promptly.
Risks and Limits to Weigh Before Treatment
Veneers are routine cosmetic dentistry, but routine does not mean consequence free.
Irreversibility comes first. MouthHealthy states it plainly: veneer treatment cannot be undone, because placing one requires removing tooth enamel. Enamel does not grow back. Once a tooth has been prepared for a traditional porcelain veneer, it will need a veneer or another restoration for the rest of its life. Minimal prep designs reduce the amount removed, but they do not make the decision undoable.
Chipping, cracking and loosening are the common failure modes. The ADA notes that a veneer can chip or crack, wear down, or come loose over time, and may then need re bonding, repair or replacement. Grinding and clenching raise that risk, as do habits such as chewing ice or using teeth as tools. A small chip may be polished or repaired; a larger fracture usually means replacing the veneer, and a night guard is a common part of the plan for people who grind.
Decay and gum problems still happen. Porcelain does not decay, but the tooth beneath and beside it does, and a margin that is hard to clean can irritate the gum.
Finally, only a licensed dentist should do this work. In a May 2024 statement, the ADA urged caution about so called veneer technicians offering services without a dentist, warning that unsupervised treatment risks complications including infection and nerve damage, and that unlicensed providers may place veneers over unhealthy teeth or untreated cavities. A procedure that permanently alters tooth structure belongs in regulated dental care, starting with an examination. More background is on our Health and Wellness hub.
What a Realistic Result Looks Like
Good cosmetic dentistry is hard to spot. Well planned veneers look clean, even and natural, with slight variation in shade and translucency, because natural teeth vary that way. Artificial looking results usually come from a shade too white for the person’s skin tone, shapes that ignore the gum line and facial proportions, or teeth so uniform that they read as a single block.
A careful dentist plans shade, shape and proportion with the patient before any permanent work, and temporary veneers preview length and shape so they can be adjusted first. The reasonable goal is a healthy, believable version of your own smile, not a copy of a famous person’s: proportions differ between people, and, as this article has shown, you usually do not know what produced the famous smile anyway.
Questions to Ask at a Consultation
Questions worth asking include:
- Are my teeth and gums healthy enough for veneers, and does anything need treating first?
- Is my concern color, shape, position, or a combination? Which treatment matches each part?
- Should whitening, bonding or orthodontics come first, or instead?
- How many teeth does the plan cover, and why is each one included?
- How much enamel would be removed from each tooth, and is a minimal prep design possible?
- Can I see a preview, such as a digital mockup or temporary veneers, before anything permanent?
- What maintenance will the veneers need, how long should they last in my case, and what will replacement involve?
- If I grind my teeth, what is the plan to protect the veneers?
- Can I have the full plan, sequence and cost breakdown in writing before I decide?
If the number of teeth grows during a first appointment, or a practice would skip treating decay or gum disease first, treat that as a warning sign and get a second opinion before agreeing to irreversible work.
When to See a Dentist Promptly
Cosmetic questions can wait; symptoms should not. Book an appointment soon if you have tooth pain, swelling, a loose or broken tooth, bleeding gums that do not settle, or a veneer that has cracked, loosened or come off. A knocked out adult tooth is a same day emergency. Treat the health problem first, and let cosmetic planning wait until the mouth is stable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Pete Davidson have veneers?
It is not confirmed. Davidson has joked about getting “new teeth,” on Weekend Update in 2018 according to entertainment reporting, and he recalled in a 2025 Hot Ones interview that Lorne Michaels advised him to get new teeth when he joined Saturday Night Live. He has never, in reporting verified for this article, named veneers or any other specific procedure, and no dental record or treating dentist has confirmed his treatment. Treat any confident claim about his exact treatment as speculation unless it comes from him or his dental team.
Can you tell from before and after photos whether someone has veneers?
Not reliably. Lighting, filters, camera angle, makeup and compression all change how teeth look, and smiles also change with cleaning, whitening, bonding and orthodontics. A shape change that whitening alone cannot explain can suggest restorative work in general terms, but it cannot prove veneers, identify a material, or date a procedure. In Davidson’s case, the chipped tooth in a widely shared 2022 photograph was reported by TMZ to be a fake made for a film role.
What did Pete Davidson actually say about his teeth?
Two remarks cover most of it. TheThings records that he announced on Weekend Update in 2018 that he got “new teeth,” without specifying what that involved. In a 2025 Hot Ones interview, he recalled Lorne Michaels telling him as a 20 year old cast member that he should get new teeth. Neither remark confirms veneers.
Can whitening alone explain a change like the one in his photos?
Partly. Whitening changes shade only: it cannot change tooth shape, length, spacing or position, and it does not work on existing veneers, crowns or fillings. If the main visible change is brightness, whitening or a professional cleaning may explain it. If a front tooth gap has closed and edges look more even, whitening alone cannot explain that; orthodontics, bonding or veneers are the general possibilities. That remains an observation about photographs, not a fact about any individual.
Are veneers permanent?
The restorations are not permanent, but the treatment usually is not reversible. The ADA MouthHealthy guidance states that the treatment cannot be undone, because placing a veneer requires removing enamel, which does not grow back. The veneers themselves wear, chip and eventually need replacement, commonly after about 10 to 15 years for porcelain, and the tooth underneath will need a veneer or another restoration for life.
How long do porcelain veneers last?
Cleveland Clinic gives an average of 10 to 15 years with proper care. A 2021 systematic review estimated that 95.5 percent of porcelain laminate veneers survived at 10 years. Individual results vary with bite forces, grinding, hygiene and the quality of the original work; composite veneers generally need attention sooner.
Are veneers painful?
Preparation is usually done with local anesthetic, so the preparation itself is not expected to be painful. Some people notice sensitivity to hot and cold for a few days afterward, including while wearing temporary veneers. Tell your dentist if sensitivity is a concern, or if it does not settle.
What should I ask before copying a celebrity smile?
Start by dropping the copy. Face shape, proportions and gum line differ, and, as this case shows, the celebrity treatment you would be copying is usually unconfirmed anyway. Ask instead what is bothering you about your own teeth, whether the most conservative option is whitening, bonding, orthodontics or veneers, how much enamel any plan would remove, and what maintenance and replacement would look like over time.
Sources & references
- Hot Ones, Pete Davidson interview, 2025, transcript reviewed for this article. Davidson recalled that Lorne Michaels told him as a young Saturday Night Live cast member that he should get new teeth. Transcript: https://youtubetotranscript.com/transcript?v=vKQ5LSNvJUY
- TheThings, Does Pete Davidson Have Fake Teeth?, December 14, 2021. Records that Davidson announced on Weekend Update in 2018 that he got "new teeth" and that Davidson has never spelled out what the change involved; also describes the earlier front tooth gap and shade change. https://www.thethings.com/pete-davidson-teeth-before-and-after-veneers-snl-kim-kardashian-fake/
- TheThings, Are Pete Davidson's Teeth Fake?, March 4, 2022. Reports that the chipped tooth seen in a viral 2022 photograph was, per TMZ reporting, a fake made for a film he was working on. https://www.thethings.com/are-pete-davidson-teeth-fake/
- Bustle, The Photos Of Ariana Grande Supporting Pete Davidson After Wisdom Teeth Surgery Are So Relatable It Almost Hurts, July 14, 2018. Contemporary reporting of Davidson's wisdom teeth surgery, documented from the couple's own social media posts. https://www.bustle.com/p/the-photos-of-ariana-grande-supporting-pete-davidson-after-wisdom-teeth-surgery-are-so-relatable-it-almost-hurts-9764615
- American Dental Association, MouthHealthy, Veneers. Definition and types of veneers, irreversibility, the requirement to treat decay and gum disease first, clenching, grinding and deep overbite cautions, placement steps, care guidance, and the licensed dentist warning. https://www.mouthhealthy.org/all-topics-a-z/veneers
- American Dental Association, MouthHealthy, Teeth Whitening. How whitening works, its limits, including that whitening does not work on veneers, crowns or fillings, and its side effects. https://www.mouthhealthy.org/all-topics-a-z/teeth-whitening
- Journal of the American Dental Association, Improving Your Smile With Dental Veneers, ADA patient guide. Veneer definition, ceramic and composite types, preparation, impression and bonding sequence, health requirements, irreversibility, and grinding caution. https://jada.ada.org/article/S0002-8177(14)65062-5/fulltext
- Cleveland Clinic, Veneers: What Are Dental Veneers? Types, candidacy, the distinction from crowns, the note that even no prep veneers require some enamel removal, and lifespan guidance of about 10 to 15 years with proper care. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/23522-dental-veneers
- American Dental Association, Statement on Recent Reports of Veneer Technicians, May 14, 2024. The ADA warning about unlicensed veneer services, including infection and nerve damage risks and the risk of placing veneers over unhealthy teeth. https://www.ada.org/about/press-releases/statement-on-recent-reports-of-veneer-technicians
- Alenezi A, Alsweed M, Alsidrani S, Chrcanovic BR. Long Term Survival and Complication Rates of Porcelain Laminate Veneers in Clinical Studies: A Systematic Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2021. Review of 25 clinical studies covering more than 6,000 porcelain laminate veneers, reporting a 10 year estimated survival rate of 95.5 percent, with fracture the most common complication. DOI: 10.3390/jcm10051074
