From December through February, we followed the progress as writer/director Parker Finn assembled the cast for a sequel to his 2022 horror film Smile (read our review HERE, watch the movie HERE) – a project we’re referring to as Smile 2 until we hear otherwise. The cast includes Naomi Scott of Aladdin and Charlie’s Angels, Lukas Gage of The White Lotus and You, Rosemarie DeWitt of La La Land and the Poltergeist remake, Dylan Gelula of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Dream Scenario, Raúl Castillo of Army of the Dead and Knives Out, Miles Gutierrez-Riley of The Wilds and On The Come Up, and Kyle Gallner (Red State), reprising the role he played in the first movie. The film is aiming for an October 18, 2024 theatrical release date, so we knew it had to be going to production soon, if it wasn’t already filming – and now Gage has confirmed that production is already underway. In fact, his work on the film is already finished!
The folks at Screen Rant caught up with Gage while he was attending the South by Southwest premiere of the Road House remake, which he has a role in. When asked about Smile 2, Gage told them, “I just wrapped. We finished in upstate New York. It’s gonna be really good. I’m really excited for everyone to see that one. Doing a lot of sequels, it feels like, this year. The year of the sequel. I hope you like it. Parker Finn, the director of that, it was crazy how much he knows this genre of movies and how he was able to recreate it and make it fresh. It was such a cool formula to follow. How did nobody think to do that creepy smile face? My smile face is so good.“
Smile was based on Finn’s short film Laura Hasn’t Slept (watch it HERE), which won the Special Jury Recognition Prize in SXSW’s Midnight Short category. Caitlin Stasey (Neighbours) played the title character in that short, and reprises the role in Smile, making it a follow-up of sorts. Smile has the following synopsis: After witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, Dr. Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) starts experiencing frightening occurrences that she can’t explain. As an overwhelming terror begins taking over her life, Rose must confront her troubling past in order to survive and escape her horrifying new reality.
Stasey was joined in the cast by Sosie Bacon, Kal Penn, Kyle Gallner, Jessie T. Usher, Rob Morgan, Judy Reyes, and Gillian Zinser.
Smile was produced by Temple Hill, and they are producing Smile 2 as well.
Finn has previously said that he feels there’s a lot of interesting stuff left to explore in the world of Smile. “I would never want to just repeat myself or retread the same ground. I’d want to make sure that there’s a new, exciting, fresh way into it that the audience isn’t anticipating. I also want to find some new ways to scare them and unnerve them. But as far as how it may connect to the first one, I’d want that to be surprising as well.“
Are you looking forward to Smile 2? Are you glad to hear it’s so far along that Lukas Gage has already wrapped? Let us know by leaving a comment below.