50 CENT is having some of his tattoos removed . . . because he’s tired of having to cover them up every time he shoots a movie.

He tells AllHipHop.com, quote, “I took some of the tattoos off . . . because on the movie set, I gotta go through four hours of make-up to cover them up before we go ahead and play the role.

So, I just took it off my arm. My right arm.”