Hollywood star Naomi Scott on tackling fame’s dark side in horror film 'Smile 2'

British actress and singer Naomi Scott, who played Princess Jasmine in the glossy fantasy Aladdin, has shifted gears dramatically in her upcoming horror film Smile 2. She plays Skye Riley, a troubled pop singer whose life unravels when she begins to experience terrifying events. The role was emotionally and physically taxing, but she welcomed the challenge.

Director Parker Finn's Smile 2 picks up where the original psychological horror hit left off. This time, instead of a psychiatrist haunted by malevolent forces, it’s a famous pop icon who feels trapped in a world that seems out to get her—she’s convinced that dark forces are working to end her life.

“I like difficult things … Weirdly, I get off on them. Maybe that’s my version of bungee jumping. So yeah, you want me to slap my face a few times? Oh yeah,” said Scott in an interview with Gulf News.

The film, out in UAE cinemas on October 18, also explores the darker side of fame, where paranoia and pressure collide.

“Fame is definitely a theme in this movie. It’s almost like fame is just like that fuel to the fire with all the things that Skye is dealing with. Fame is just not a conducive environment to deal with them. What’s smart here is that the main protagonist is famous, and they may be going through things that are incredibly universal feelings, but the pressure cooker of being famous tends to make those things worse,” explained Scott.

Her complex character, she tells Gulf News, courted popularity very early on in her life, perhaps too early for her to understand the pitfalls of it either. She found the idea of playing a public figure with an inability to “grow and mature in relationships” fascinating. In the movie, she plays a young woman who often questions her self-worth.

“Skye probably got famous at a very young age and didn't have space to discover what she likes, who she is because that was projected back at her from a very young age. Her life revolves around her, right? And that can be a very lonely place, very anxiety-inducing, and the relationships around you become very conditional. So, there's this insecurity around your kind of self-worth.”

And who better than director Finn to handle such a complex, layered theme? With Smile 2, Finn builds on the psychological depth that made the first 2022 film a standout in the horror genre. Instead of leaning into traditional horror tropes, he crafts a nuanced exploration of fame, paranoia, and the mind's descent into darkness. Themes like mental health and how fragile your mind can get are explored with searing intensity. Finn often places horror within the protagonist’s psyche, dishing out a chilling, thought-provoking narrative that resonates on a deeply emotional level. What’s real and what’s imagined is a game that Finn excels at. And Scott remembers her first meeting with the dynamic director. 

“It was a general meeting that probably should have been 45 minutes long. It ended up being three hours. We just connected so much. I knew he was making a second Smile movie but didn’t know much about it. But I knew he was a great filmmaker with a real vision, and that solidified in that conversation. Here’s a guy who really wants to take a swing and is confident in what he wants to do. He’s also collaborative, so I feel really blessed.”

The shoot was incredibly tough, but the cast and crew put in their blood, sweat, tears, and some rip-roaring screams, says Scott.

So did she draw from her own experiences as a Disney darling to play the emotionally fractured pop icon in Smile 2? After all, the film takes a nick at the darker side of fame, fandom, and the current celebrity culture.

Scott's career began in her teens with her role in the British TV series Life Bites (2008), but she gained widespread recognition after starring as Princess Jasmine in Disney's live-action adaptation of 'Aladdin (2019). Her stunning performance showcased not only her acting skills but also her powerful singing voice, earning her a special place in the hearts of Disney fans. Following Aladdin, Scott starred in a slew of films including Charlie's Angels (2019), where she demonstrated her versatility as an action star. She also starred in the Netflix miniseries Anatomy of a Scandal, where she played Olivia Lytton, who gets embroiled in a sex scandal involving a high-profile politician.

“I have been so blessed because I have such an incredible support system and family. I don’t move through the world in a way where I am getting stopped everywhere. I am not super-famous like a lot of people are, but I have been able to observe others,” said Scott. Interestingly, she never grew up watching horror films. It was something she discovered later in life in films like St Maud and Let The Right One In, and she always tended to drink in the beauty behind each macabre scene.

“I just appreciated and kept falling in love with the craft behind the filmmaking of it. When we were filming, I found beauty in gory, blood-soaked moments too.”

In person, Scott comes across as the most affable and personable star. She’s the kind of actress who will marvel at how my kids are huge Princess Jasmine fans and give a special shout-out to them in this strictly timed interview. But her role in Smile 2 was oddly liberating because she plays a star who’s aloof and in her own world, a far cry from her real self.

“I just really loved playing Skye. For example, there’s this random detail where I cannot stand my assistant, Josh, in the movie. I have never really talked to him, and I just ignore his presence. But I really enjoyed that because maybe I am a people pleaser, but there was something about this character where she’s not aware of others around her … Skye runs the gambit of emotions, and you will be entertained by her.”

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Smile 2 is out in UAE cinemas on October 18.