‘Smile,’ 2022’s Highest-Earning Original Horror Film, Coming to Paramount+ on Nov. 15
Ah, the Thanksgiving season. It’s the perfect time of year for good friends, good food, and… devastatingly frightening horror flicks? That’s the line of thinking Paramount+ is operating on, as the service has announced that it is adding the terrifying horror movie “Smile” to its lineup on Tuesday, Nov. 15.
The film follows Dr. Rose Cotter, a doctor working in an unremarkable hospital. After witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, she starts experiencing frightening occurrences that she can’t quite explain. As an overwhelming terror begins taking over her life, she must confront her troubling past in order to survive and escape her horrifying new reality.
The film stars Sosie Bacon, Jessie T. Usher, Kyle Gallner, Caitlin Stasey, Kal Penn, and Rob Morgan. Director Parker Finn was first approached by Paramount in 2020 to adapt his short film “Laura Hasn’t Slept” into a feature-length supernatural psychological horror film, which was retitled “Smile.” The film made over $200 million at the box office, becoming the highest-earning original horror movie to hit theaters in 2022.
The Nov. 15 debut on Paramount+ means the film will have had a 46-day window in theaters and on transactional video-on-demand (TVOD) platforms like Prime Video. Paramount CEO Brian Robbins has noted the importance of theatrical releases, but notes that the 45-day policy that has become a standard in the industry has been working well for his company.
“Smile” was originally intended to skip a theatrical window and premiere on Paramount+, but excellent test screenings convinced Paramount to put the film in theaters, according to a story from The Hollywood Reporter.
“Smile” will have around a month to make its impact on Paramount+, because after that the film will assuredly be bumped from the spotlight. “Top Gun: Maverick,” the biggest movie of the year, will finally arrive on the streaming service on or around Dec. 22 in the U.S. When it does, “Smile” will have to depend on horror fans to keep even a sliver of audience attention.
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 40,000+ TV show episodes from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and more. The lineup includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa, Serie A, and NWSL. The service also offers the option to watch your live CBS affiliate. The upgraded ad-free package includes premium movies and shows from Showtime.