This piece contains some spoilers forSmileandSmile 2Smile 2will go down in history as one of the finest horror films of 2024. The first entry dropped two years ago to widespread praise, and though neither will change the face of horror, the sequel is a marked improvement. Writer/director Parker Finn exploded onto the scene withLaura Hasn’t Slept, the short film that becameSmile. Save one 2018 short, Finn hasn’t directed anything outside this franchise. Everyone’s excited to see what Finn has next, and that could potentially include a new genre.Smile 2has a brief thriller section that deserves attention.
Horrorcinema isn’t a 100% guaranteedhit, but it seems to be one of the safest bets at the box office right now. Superhero movies are hit or miss, but most scary stories seem to find audiences in October. Watching the low-budget gorefestTerrifier 3absolutely dominateJoker: Folie à Deuxhas been very fascinating, the quality of both of those projects aside. With a modest budget,Smile 2is comfortably raking it in as well. Funnily enough, Blumhouse schlock, likeAfraid,is struggling. Maybe audiences are becoming more discerning.
Parker Finn
Stars
Naomi Scott, Rosemarie DeWitt, Lukas Gage, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, and Kyle Gallner
Release Date
June 09, 2025
The firstfew minutes ofSmile 2are the only moments that require the audience to have seenSmile. The rest of the film is unrelated, standing comfortably on its own. Still, that early moment is one of the film’s finest. Modern horror films demand a scary sequence in their first few minutes, as if the producers expect the audience to tune out if they don’t see someone die almost instantly.Smile2’s beginning is arguably an immediate scare, but it’s also a clever piece of cinema that feels slightly out of step with the rest of the piece. It follows Kyle Gallner’s Joel, a secondary character from the original film. Those who saw the firstSmileknow that Joel became the film’s final recipient of the unnamed demon that transfers between victims like a disease. Aware of Rob Morgan’s Robert Talley, Joel knows the hidden method of escaping the demon. He has to kill someone in front of someone else,passing the trauma and the demononto the witness.Smile 2begins with his botched attempt to ditch the infection.
Joel essentially becomes a vigilante with the intent ofpassing the demon onto someonewho deserves to die. He picks out a pair of alleged murderers, breaks into their home, and stabs one in front of the other. Unfortunately, the would-be witness opens fire, forcing Joel to shoot back. Joel catches a bullet and deals the witness a mortal wound, leaving no one to pass the demon onto. Joel discovers Lewis, a low-level drug dealer who saw the shootout. Joel apologizes and attempts to flee the scene, only to be run over on his way out. It’s a fast-paced action sequence that feels almost completely out of step with the rest of the film. Yet, it maintains Parker Finn’s distinct cinematography. That distinct clash makes it feel like something new, andFinn would be wise to let that flourish.
Parker Finn is still a new talent
Parker Finn’s work is currently confined almost entirely to theSmilefranchise. His first notable project was a short calledThe Hidebehind, which was released in 2018. It happens to feature an antagonist with a massive rictus grin, but that’s neither here nor there. He followed that initial workwithLaura Hasn’t Slept, which screened at SXSW in 2020. That short established most of Finn’s career in the four years since. It’s a psychological horror outing about an antagonist with a haunting smile and a penchant for warping reality.Smileadapted that premise into a feature film, andSmile 2carried the story forward. Finn has another project planned. Impossibly, it’s a remake of Andrzej Żuławski’sPossession, which will be a truly shocking project if it ever hits the screen. He’ll have to do something after that.
Parker Finn could make a killer thriller
Imagine Finn putting his specific style behind something in the vein of Jeremy Saulnier’s work.Blue Ruin,Green Room, andRebel Ridgeare intense, gripping, and powerful films that use a distinct visual language to make a thriller work. They also feature some of the most jaw-dropping violence in the genre. Parker Finn could find himself comfortably among that type of filmmaker. With hard work, he could even put his mastery of tension behind something comparabletoThe Silence of the Lambs. The opening ofSmile 2is so effective because it mostly eschews the supernatural elements of the narrative. It’s pure, pulse-pounding stress with extremely real stakes. This would be a welcome change of pace for Finn’s career.
Grounded thrillers aren’t inherently better than supernatural horror films, but they are very different. TheSmilemovies are known for their fake-outs, constantlytwisting reality for the viewerand the characters. Some viewers will find themselves unable or unwilling to believe anything, robbing some key moments of their impact. A theoretical thriller by Parker Finn could maintain the tension while also keeping things grounded. Plus, thrillers usually have fewer jump scares.
