The horror genre has produced some legendary conduits of wickedness throughout its gory lifeline, spurning out the infamous Alfred Hitchcock, the dearly beloved Wes Craven, and the annually celebrated John Carpenter, to name a few.
Surviving the legacies are the masterminds behind Blumhouse — who, by the way, have championed James Wan (Insidious), and Scott Dickerson (The Black Phone) — and a slaughterhouse of fresh meat, including Nia DaCosta, Ti West, Ari Aster, and Jordan Peele.
Now, director and writer Parker Finn can be added to the blood-stained palette with his eerily demonic film, Smile. The horror pic will be his feature-length directorial debut, set for a Sept. 30 theatrical release. Sosie Bacon plays Rose Cotter, a doctor with a dark past that comes to light when a traumatizing ordeal with a patient evokes mentally taunting incidents.
The cast includes Kyle Gallner, Jessie T. Usher, Kal Penn, Judy Reyes, Rob Morgan, and Caitlin Stasey, who also starred in a previous short film by Finn.
Based on the trailer alone, Smile just may be the next hit for Paramount Pictures as they simmer in the $1.4 billion success of the Tom Cruise-led Top Gun: Maverick. The one question that lingers after previewing the mysterious trailer is: Who knew that a smile could be so…creepy?
Smile is produced under the good folks at Paramount Players, Robert Salerno of Artina Films, and Marty Bowen, Wyck Godfrey, and Isaac Klausner of Temple Hill Entertainment.
Watch the Official Trailer for ‘Smile’ Below:
Finn first introduces his “horror aura” in the 2018 short film, The Hidebehind, a thrilling 10-minute story about a lone backpacker’s encounter with an evil dwelling using the forest as its playground.
Finn establishes his signature style of directing with harrowing angles, extreme long-shots, and unsettling handheld movements, along with an intense score for good measure. His debut won the Special Jury Award at the 2019 Portland Horror Film Festival.
In 2020, the budding director followed up with Laura Hasn’t Slept, chronicling the downward spiral of a woman (Caitlin Stasey) who keeps having a recurring nightmare that motivates her to seek therapy.
The short film won the Jury Award at the Mile High Horror Film Festival and caught the attention of Paramount Pictures at the Austin-based SXSW Film Festival when it won the 2020 Midnight Short Special Jury Award. A feature film based on the short is said to be in the works at the major studio.
