Horror movies have always corrupted seemingly innocent things or actions. For instance, after The Exorcist became a global sensation in 1973, no one ever looked at pea soup quite the same way again. Stephen King’s It, both the excellent 1990 mini-series and the two feature films in 2017 and 2019, made clowns even scarier, if that’s possible.
In 2022, the horror genre transformed perhaps the most innocuous thing of all: a smile. That’s due to the hit film Smile, which prominently displayed creepy people smiling in both its marketing and the film itself to terrify audiences. The ploy worked; The film became a word-of-mouth hit in September, with audiences packing movie theaters to see what all the fuss was about. Now, the horror film is making its way to streaming, where anyone with enough guts (no pun intended) can discover how smiling can be the creepiest thing you can see in a horror movie.
Where is it streaming?
If you want to scare yourself silly by watching a horror movie about childhood trauma, demonic possession, insufferable birthday parties, and, of course, creepy smiling, there’s only one platform where you can watch it for free with a subscription. Paramount+ will be the streaming home for Smile for the foreseeable future.
While Smile may lure you to Paramount+, there are many more shows and movies available on the platform to make your subscription worth your while. Shows like The Good Fight, Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and The Twilight Zone and hit movies like The Lost City, Orphan: First Kill, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 are just a few of the titles that you won’t want to miss.
When does it stream for subscribers?
Smile is now streaming on Paramount+.
How much does it cost?
That depends on what kind of plan you prefer. To take advantage of the free trial, simply head to the Paramount+ website and sign up here. Your first seven days will be free, but after the trial period, subscription plans start as low as $5 per month. That option (called “Essential”) comes with limited commercial interruptions. If you don’t want any ads, the Premium monthly subscription will cost you $10 a month.
You can save money if you commit to a one-year subscription, too. An Essential annual subscription is $50 a year while a Premium annual subscription is $100.You can also bundle the Paramount+ subscription with a Showtime subscription for $12 a month or $120 a year. For more info on all Paramount+ subscription plans, click here.
Is it worth it?
Yes. Smile is genuinely creepy and delivers on the promise of being an unsettling horror movie you won’t soon forget. Digital Trends reviewed the film and found it to be “a nasty, diabolically calibrated multiplex scream machine.” It’s the rare horror movie that tackles a serious subject (childhood trauma and abuse) but doesn’t forget to deliver the scares and gore.
The movie stars Sosie Bacon (the daughter of Kevin Bacon, who also got his start out in the horror genre), Kyle Gallner, Kal Penn, Robin Wiegert, Judy Reyes, and Rob Morgan. It was directed by Parker Finn, and runs 115 minutes.
Currently, Smile registers a healthy 79% on the Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes and has a critics score of 68 on Metacritic.
Smile will stream on Nov. 15 on Paramount+.
