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Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Smile 2 and Smile. Reader discretion is advised.
2022's Smile became an eerie sensation in no time. In this supernatural horror tale, therapist Rose Cotter gets possessed by an evil entity that spreads its curse through a creepy smile. Rose learns a way to pass on the curse but succumbs to the entity's manipulation, which feeds on its victim's trauma. Flash-forward to 2024, Smile 2 shows pop star Skye Riley facing a similar fate after she witnesses her drug dealer die because of the smile entity. Eventually, it leads her to her demise on a grand stage in a stadium filled with her fans.
It proved to be one of the most unnerving movie endings from 2024 and led to a myriad of discussions. The film's writer-director recently spoke with Entertainment Weekly and shared how he came up with this poignant ending. Here's what he said:
"For Skye, what I was chasing was this catharsis of her journey that ends so horribly, but it ends, for me, exactly where it should. It felt like the most horrifying thing I could possibly do was have her on stage, finally taken over by the Smile in front of 20,000 screaming fans. There's a question of, is it being live-streamed? How big could it go? It felt intoxicating to me. I loved this feeling and power of the Smile, and this idea of the commentary on celebrity platform and influence on the public. She's potentially passing this on, and the idea of, because of her platform and celebrity, how many people thatcan reach."
Director Parker Finn sheds light on the shocking Smile 2 ending: Answer explored
The Smile movie series follows people dying from the curse of an evil entity. It possesses them through a smile and refuses to let go until they pass it to someone else. On the surface, it seems like a standard genre rehash just about an entity's possession. However, there is more to it than meets the eye.
The 2022 film showed that this dark entity feeds off of people's traumas while the sequel added a few more layers. It examined the effects of toxic celebrity culture, also highlighted in 2024's The Substance. So, while speaking about the final moments in Skye's journey, director Parker Finn shared what it means for her as a pop star:
"It was an exploration of the downfall of this pop star who's unable to overcome the things that have been put upon her. What I love about the ending of this film is that I wanted to create this meta-feeling moment, where the audience in the arena is staring through the screen at the audience in the movie theater, which largely plays out as his camera fixes on the audience's horrified faces. "I wanted to raise the question: Did we do this to Skye? By us coming back for a Smile 2, have we done this to her? It's all intriguing to me, this idea of 'are we complicit in this?'"
What will happen in Smile 3? Director Parker Finn's comments explored
Smile 2 ended on a horrifying note as protagonist Skye Riley faced an ill fate in front of a live audience. Since they all witnessed her death, it can lead to some serious repercussions.
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So, Director Parker Finn also spoke about a potential third chapter and where the franchise will lead if it happens:
"We'll have to see how audiences react to Smile 2. I think that, in the way that we jump rails from Smile to Smile 2, if there were more Smile stories to tell in the future, I'd want to make sure we're doing something that feels like, holy s---, I can't believe this is where Smile is going. The Smile films are so character-driven; it's the reason I wanted to tell these intimate, human melodramas. I'd want to make sure that would be infused in any future Smile stories as well. There are a lot of interesting directions on where it could go. I'm staying mum on what could or could not happen, but I think it'd be really exciting."
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