Smile 2 picks up six days after Rose’s (Sosie Bacon) death, where Joel (Kyle Gallner) is tasked with passing on the curse. Here, we’re under the impression that Joel is the main character of Smile 2, but he unexpectedly dies in the opening after attempting to pass the curse onto someone.

The movie’s real focus is on Naomi Scott’s character, Skye Riley, a pop star caught between the pressure of fame and a horrifying curse.

After a long hiatus from tour following the death of her actor boyfriend (Ray Nicolson), she plans to make a comeback for her fans. However, once she witnesses the death of her high school friend, Lewis (Lukas Gage), she becomes cursed with a series of horrifying disasters waiting to happen.

Smile 2 presents many shocking moments with Riley, showing her gradual progression into insanity, such as her being tricked into saying her dead boyfriend's name on the stage of a charity event, her hijacking a car at gunpoint, and even attempting to take her own life in the final battle with the Smile demon.

The supporting cast is truly where Smile 2 shines, with a list of highly acclaimed movies on their resume. Rosemarie DeWitt plays Skye’s mother, reminiscent of her previous role as Amy Bowen in Poltergeist. Peter Jacobson, who acts in the USA Network’s Colony and Fox’s medical drama House, plays the role of Morris. Morris is an ER nurse who attempts to kill the Smile demon by stopping Riley’s heartbeat and reviving her. There’s also a cameo from Drew Barrymore, who speaks to Riley on her talk show about her return to music after her one-year hiatus.

Riley’s return to music includes new music from Naomi Scott for Smile 2’s soundtrack, making it clear that she’s come a long way from “She’s So Gone” and the Disney days. There are five original songs sung by Naomi Scott, each with electronic and Charli XCX energy and even a piano version for “Just My Name”.

Several songs in the movie hint at Riley’s impending fate. In her first performance in the movie, the song “New Brain” includes lyrics like “I’m going crazy” and “Do you think someone could save me?” which hints at her deteriorating mental state. Another song, “Blood On White Satin” features lines such as, “I feel like something is changing” and “Am I a future disaster waiting to happen?”

While the scenes complement her dancing ability in songs such as “New Brain”, the choreography is also used in a much more creepy way. In one scene where Riley apprehensively returns to her New York penthouse, she discovers her backup dancers smiling in sync while chasing her.

The ending of Smile 2 ultimately takes the cake for one of the most heart-wrenching endings in film. After Skye’s continuous fight against the Smile curse, she becomes possessed, beating herself to death with her concert microphone, traumatizing the list of concertgoers and potentially passing on the curse to the entire world.

So far, Smile 2 has been mainly positive reviews, already having received 81% on Rotten Tomatoes and 64% on Metacritic. This is evenly matched with the first Smile release, scoring 80% on Rotten Tomatoes and 64% on Metacritic.

The original Smile grossed $200 million with $22.6 million of those in the opening week. Despite the recent trend of low first-week sales, Smile 2 hopes to reverse the trend aiming for $20 million.