Parker Finn unleashed the mythology of Smile back in 2022. Recapping it, in Smile Dr. Madeline Northcott (Robin Weigert) witnesses a bizarre, traumatic incident involving Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon). From here she becomes convinced that an uncanny entity is increasingly threatening her. Very successful with Horror fans, now in 2024 we have the aptly titled sequel Smile 2.
Released October 18, 2024 in theaters via Paramount Pictures, and set for release on DVD and 4K Ultra HD Steelbook on January 21, 2025, Parker Finn is back at the helm with a cast including Naomi Scott (Aladdin 2019, Charlie’s Angels 2019), Rosemarie DeWitt (Cinderella Man 2005, La La Land 2016), Lukas Gage (Road House 2024), Miles Gutierrez-Riley (The Wilds 2022), Peter Jacobson (Midnight Meat Train 2008, White House Down 2013), Ray Nicholson (son of Jack Nicholson), Dylan Gelula (Chasing Life series), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt series), Raúl Castillo (Army of the Dead 2021), and Kyle Gallner (Scream 2022, Smile 2022). Furthermore, there is also a cameo by Drew Barrymore, who appears as herself, interviewing Skye on her talk show, while Finn appears as a photographer.
The story kicks off when global Pop Sensation Skye Riley (Scott) sets out on a world tour. All well and good, she begins to experience increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her past.
The set-up is over the top as loose ends from the original are chaotically taken care of setting the stage for the rest of the flick, making it debatable whether you are even going like these characters enough to care when the stuff hits the fan. This is different from the first, which was immediately engaging. Fortunately, as the flick goes on, we learn Skye’s motivation, which makes her less annoying, because, based on her opening interactions with her entourage, who are genuinely trying to look out for her, specifically with Lukas Gage’s Lewis, her supplier, a moviegoer or someone streaming would walk out or swipe right. It is imperative that audiences can tolerate her since she is the captain of the cast’s team.
Thinking back on it, the over-topness hopefully satirizes celebrity and being extra or being a diva. However, the PTSD and the drug abuse issues we find out later are what have kept her out of the spotlight are serious topics. With this in mind, the first Smile plays it straight from start to finish with no grey area. What Smile 2 does have going for it is it expounds on the mythology by explaining it is a hybrid and a possibly viable way to beat the entity.
Going forward, this could expand the franchise’s audience by having the established Horror crowd and gaining the Sci-Fi, or it could become a convoluted trainwreck. The scope has exponentially widened with Skye being a performer, thus, she has potentially passed ‘the smile’ onto everybody who was at her last concert. This is exciting because the infected concertgoers could infect anybody, anywhere making it a plague. Conversely, this could be a trainwreck.
Beyond all of this, another thing Smile 2 has going for it is Smile 2: The Skye Riley EP; a soundtrack sung by Naomi Scott as her character ‘Skye Riley.’ Released through Interscope Records on October 11, 2024, this matters, because in musicals such as 2017’s Greatest Showman, not all the cast sing their parts. Knowing Scott sings gives her character validity, even in some small parts.
For now, there are no plans for Smile 3, but Finn has said he would love to continue playing in the Smile sandbox if Smile 2 does well. The numbers say that the franchise has plenty to grin about… so it is a safe bet that audiences will catch ‘the smile’ again. Until then, Cryptic Rock gives Smile 2 3.5 stars out of 5.
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