How Smile: For the Camera Reveals a New Side of This Twisted Horror Universe

There's nary shortage of bully fearfulness comics connected the stands these days, but IDW Publishing's IDW Dark enactment has rapidly risen supra the battalion acknowledgment to a winning blend of archetypal concepts and spinoffs of iconic movie franchises (like the wildly palmy Event Horizon: Dark Descent). IDW Dark's latest prequel bid is focused connected a much caller occurrence communicative successful the fearfulness country - Smile. Smile: For the Camera is simply a caller communicative acceptable successful this twisted beingness from The Exorcism astatine 1600 Penn and The Exorcism astatine Buckingham Palace creator/writer Hannah Rose May and Disney Villains: Cruella De Vil creator Miriana Puglia.

IGN precocious spoke with May astir this prequel bid and its connections to the erstwhile 2 movies. Read connected to larn much astir the newest Smile escapade and to spot recently revealed screen creation for Smile: For the Camera #3.

May reveals that this bid has been successful the works for a small implicit a year, with its origins dating backmost to NYCC 2024 and the archetypal debut of IDW Dark's licensed movie comics.

"This task originated astatine NYC 2024 erstwhile we were debuting The Exorcism astatine 1600 Penn," May tells IGN. "I was connected a sheet for the motorboat of IDW Dark wherever they unveiled their caller database of Paramount-licensed titles. They mentioned that they were presently speechmaking pitches for Smile and asked if I had immoderate involvement successful pitching. I'm a sucker for superb marketing, and Smile had 1 of the astir genius campaigns that had maine hooked earlier I adjacent bought a ticket. What Parker Finn has built with The Smile beingness is going to terrify radical for decades to come."

Art by Steph C. (Image Credit: IDW/Paramount)

Clearly, the Smile movies person struck a chord with audiences. We were funny what May sees arsenic the basal of their appeal, and however that entreaty translates to the comic publication medium.

"At their core, they’re dramas that person a almighty supernatural hook," May says. "Both Rose and Skye are suffering from their ain trauma and guilt, forced to grin done their symptom which is thing that resonates with astir everyone. And past the entity brings that symptom to the aboveground successful terrifying fashion. In the satellite of print, Smile really translates acold amended than you’d think. There’s an inherent equilibrium of “show” don’t “tell” that you person to instrumentality with comics that really lends itself to the Smile world. Our instrumentality kit successful comics is simply a spot much constricted than a movie but we’ve channeled the tone of Parker’s filmmaking into our writing, art, colors and letters to present connected an acquisition that volition reward fans of the franchise."

While For the Camera is decidedly acceptable successful the aforesaid beingness arsenic the erstwhile films, May reveals that the extremity is to archer a standalone prequel story. The lone communal thread present is the basal premise and the malignant infleunc eof the Smile entity.

"This bid is wholly basal alone, the lone transportation betwixt our publication and the films is the entity," May says. "The extremity was to archer a caller story, successful a caller clip play and successful a caller mounting that allowed america to research akin themes from the films. If you’ve ne'er seen the movie, you’ll beryllium capable to leap close successful to Smile: For The Camera. We wanted to make thing that rewarded returning fans portion besides being capable to entice caller fans to the world."

Smile: For the Camera is acceptable successful 2005, heavy successful the bosom of the manner industry. It's not hard to spot wherever that mounting could beryllium mined for horror. May explains that this some allows her to support region from the Smile movies portion exploring a satellite that has plentifulness of monsters adjacent earlier the Smile entity enters the picture.

"The aboriginal 2000s was pre-social media, pre-smartphones and a satellite wherever monoculture inactive existed. Culture was dictated by gatekeepers similar TV networks, movie studios, and publications," May says. "I wanted to absorption connected an manufacture wherever smiling is an indispensable portion of the occupation and if you were fortunate enough, that grin could crook you into a supermodel overnight. The manner manufacture is besides filled with its ain monsters and truthful we wanted to spell backwards successful clip to research this play portion besides putting region betwixt our communicative and Parker’s films."

Smile: For the Camera stars a caller protagonist named Ivy. May explains that Ivy shares rather spot successful communal with past protagonists Rose and Skye, adjacent with the spread successful time. However, determination is 1 cardinal quality separating these women.

"Ivy is our food retired of water, a rookie exemplary that serves arsenic the reader’s caller brace of eyes into the satellite of modeling," May says. "She’s confident, intelligent but astir of all, she’s a pragmatist. She isn’t looking to go a supermodel, she conscionable wants to marque immoderate wealth to wage disconnected her pupil loans truthful she tin commencement her life. Like Rose and Skye, she’s caring and compassionate contempt being successful an manufacture that thrives connected competition. Where they disagree is that Ivy is coming to our communicative without trauma oregon guilt for the entity to provender disconnected of. It’s done our communicative that Ivy finds herself confronting a acheronian that gives the entity the substance it needs to survive."

Art by Skyler Patridge. (Image Credit: IDW/Paramount)

The Smile movies marque a constituent of not revealing excessively overmuch astir the quality of the Smile Entity. May says that the comic isn't needfully looking to change that approach, though the publication whitethorn conscionable marque immoderate contributions to the mythos that fans aren't expecting.

"We wanted to beryllium incredibly respectful to the satellite gathering and lore that Parker has painstakingly acceptable up successful Smile," May says. "For us, we didn’t privation to grow excessively overmuch of the mythos of the entity but with each installment of the franchise, we larn a small spot more. With our series, we were precise fortunate that Parker and Paramount were generous capable to fto america bash a fewer things that I deliberation fans of the franchise volition beryllium excited to see. You’ll person to work to find out!"

As for the artwork, May says, "I had conscionable got done moving with [colorist Dearbhla Kelly] connected The Guy successful the Chair earlier Smile, truthful I was excited knowing her strengths coming into this. Miriana brought her ain benignant and code to the publication which is wherefore comics are truthful great. It’s a collaborative mean and what you envision doesn't ever lucifer the artist's benignant exactly, but that's portion of the originative process. The champion portion is erstwhile those pages deed your inbox and you spot however everyone's contributions travel together. Our extremity was ever to make thing visually unsocial portion honoring the Smile films. I judge we've done that!"

Smile: For the Camera #1 volition beryllium released connected February 18, with a preorder deadline of January 12. You tin preorder a transcript astatine your section comic shop.

In different comic publication news, find retired which bid was selected arsenic IGN's champion comic publication of 2025, and spot which comics we're astir excited for successful 2026.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.