‘Smile 2’ is not a ‘send-up’ of celebrity culture, its director says. It’s a ‘behind-the-scenes’ look at the horrors of being a pop star.

If the pop star who’s terrorized by a demon in Smile 2 feels like a familiar story, you’re probably right. Parker Finn, who wrote and directed the horror sequel and its predecessor, drew inspiration from many larger-than-life singers, including Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Lady Gaga, Amy Winehouse and Whitney Houston.

Smile 2 follows the fictional Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) as she prepares for a massive comeback tour following a tragedy. What would already be a difficult time is made infinitely worse when she’s haunted by a murderous entity.

Finn spoke to Yahoo Entertainment about the horrors of pop stardom, paying homage to singers without parodying them and his upcoming reboot of a horror masterpiece.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

How did writing and directing Smile 2 impact the way you think about pop stardom?

When I sat down to begin writing it, I immersed myself in everything that I could regarding the pop music industry and pop stars. I watched every documentary that I could. I read essays, interviews — everything I could get my hands on. And I was really fascinated by the behind-the-scenes of what it’s like to be one of the stars who get sort of elevated to godlike status. I think we put so much pressure on some of these women to always be playing this persona in public and always be performing even when they’re not onstage. I think that takes a major toll. It’s a toll that is hard for them to show to the world. There are current events right now where people are seeing where that stress is pushing the envelope. But in general, there’s something really intriguing about the parasocial relationship we have with celebrities.

As someone who covers a lot of pop stars, I thought the film seemed like it borrowed from a lot of people’s experiences, but it didn’t come across as a straight-up parody of one singular person. How did you balance that?

One of the rules I had for myself is that this would not be a send-up of celebrity or of a pop star. I wanted [Skye Riley] to be a real human being, and we get access behind the velvet rope with her. This is a genuine human who is emotionally fraught and struggling with a lot of stuff that we all do. I gleaned a lot from all the research I did, but I’m also a fan of pop. There were women that I had in mind for the public persona and the stage performer. It was really important that Skye felt instantly familiar in the way that we get the idea that she’s a pop star … but also felt like a whole unique creation. Myself and my collaborators worked very hard to keep that as our North Star — somebody who blended the lines between fiction and reality. Naomi [Scott] brought so much to the table that we were in a constant dialogue about the character.

What direction did you give Naomi ahead of time on how to craft the persona of Skye Riley?

Naomi is sort of a perfect storm for the character. She’s got this amazing X factor gravitas to her, where you can instantly believe that she would be a pop star, but she’s also capable of going to these incredibly raw, human, fragile places. She sings all the original songs in the film. She’s performing the choreography. She’s an incredible triple threat. We were really partners in crime on this. We talked about this idea that Skye is always operating on different frequencies in every scene. We’d go through the script talking about “where is Skye” and “what’s going on” both outwardly and under the surface — things that aren’t always relevant to the audience, but that she’s still feeling.

Have you seen any other horror movies this year that really impressed you?

I loved Longlegs, The First Omen and The Substance. I think it’s incredible what the Terrifier team has been doing. It’s a great time for horror. It feels like we’re in the middle of a really wonderful horror renaissance.

You’ve been working on Smile and Smile 2 for a long time. What’s next?

I’m writing my next film right now that I’m doing with Paramount. It’s a remake of the 1981 film Possession. That’s on deck, but I’m exploring a lot of things right now. I love horror. It’s one of my first loves. I like films that can feel like an event. I’m definitely interested in making movies for big audiences.

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