When it grinned its way onto the big screen in 2022, Parker Finn’s original horror Smile became an instant hit – making big money at the box office, kicking off a spooky new saga, and connecting to audiences with its super simple premise: you see the smile, and your days are numbered. Now, two years alter, get ready for Smile 2, continuing the legacy of the grim-grinning nightmare, now with a new protagonist in Naomi Scott’s Skye Riley – an international pop star whose major tour is interrupted by the smirking faces she can’t stop seeing. Check out the trailer:
Well, that should leave fans of the first film… well, smiling. Finn seems to be upping the ante here with a slightly bigger, glossier sequel – but by the looks of things, the psychological torture will continue in a major way. And is there something in the water in Hollywood at the moment? Between Smile 2 and M Night Shyamalan’s Trap, that’s two upcoming fright-fests revolving around a fictional pop star. Beyond Scott, the sequel stars Lukas Gage and Rosemarie DeWitt, plus Kyle Gallner reprising the role of Joel from the first film.
Here’s the official synopsis: “About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control.”
Will Smile 2 continue to make Finn’s franchise a major hit? Will audiences be ready for more smile-based scares? And will we ever see Smile 2’s Skye Riley and Trap’s Lady Raven touring together? Answers to some of those questions will arrive when Smile 2 hits UK cinemas in October.