Why Smile 2 viewers should check out this terrifying Creepypasta first
ParamountParker Finn’s Smile 2 is coming up, just in time for Halloween, so what better way to get in the mood than by checking out a horrifying Creepypasta that matches the horror movie sequel in fear factor.
Smile 2 is set to deliver the goods, featuring plenty more creepy smiling demons after the curse is transferred over to pop star Skye Riley (Naomi Scott). Kyle Gallner will also be returning as Joel (although judging by the trailer, not for long).
As Halloween approaches, Smile 2 is one of many upcoming horror movies aiming to keep you up at night. We’ve also got Terrifier 3 to look forward to, as well as dozens of library titles heading to streaming this month.
But for those who want an extra dose of dread, sometimes the real scares lie within the darkest corners of the internet. One Creepypasta in particular taps into our primal fears, mirroring the uncanny valley vibes of Smile 2.
The Smiling Man is the perfect lead-in to Smile 2
Rotten.com, Goatse, and Creepypastas… the early days of the world wide web were the Wild West of shock and horror. If you weren’t around or you have no clue what we’re talking about, Creepypastas are essentially just horror stories that originated online.
They blew up in the 2000s and reached new heights in the 2010s with the rise of the popular Creepypasta villain, Slenderman. If you find yourself trembling in fear over the eerie uncanny imagery shown in Smile, The Smiling Man could be worth checking out.
Sony PicturesOriginally published by Reddit user blue_tidal on the subreddit r/LetsNotMeet in 2012, the story centers on a person who goes on a night walk, only to be confronted by the titular villain.
First, they set the scene, saying they live downtown in a major US city and regularly go for peaceful night walks. On a regular Wednesday night, they headed out at around 1-2am before looping back to their apartment – and that’s when they first noticed him.
“At the far end of the street, on my side, was the silhouette of a man, dancing,” they wrote. “It was a strange dance, similar to a waltz, but he finished each ‘box’ with an odd forward stride. I guess you could say he was dance-walking, headed straight for me.”
Not knowing what to do, blue_tidal moved close to the road to give him room to pass, and as he danced closer, they noticed “his eyes were open wide and wild, head tilted back slightly, looking off at the sky. His mouth was formed in a painfully wide cartoon of a smile.”
They decided to cross the street before he got any closer, but when they turned back, he had stopped dancing and was standing opposite them. “He was facing me but still looking skyward. Smile still wide on his lips.”
Not knowing what else to do, they started walking away, keeping their eyes firmly on him – until they had to look at the street ahead for a moment. When they turned back, he was on the other side of the street, “slightly crouched down.”
“I had looked away from him for no more than 10 seconds, so it was clear that he had moved fast,” they continued.
“I was so shocked that I stood there for some time, staring at him. And then he started moving toward me again. He took giant, exaggerated tip toed steps, as if he were a cartoon character sneaking up on someone. Except he was moving very, very quickly.”
Although they wanted to take action, all they could do was stand there, frozen as the Smiling Man approached. Then he stopped again, about a “car length away, still smiling his big smile.”
“And then, after what felt like forever, he turned around, very slowly, and started dance-walking away. Just like that. Not wanting to turn my back to him again, I just watched him go, until he was far enough away to almost be out of sight,” they said.
“And then I realized something. He wasn’t moving away anymore, nor was he dancing. I watched in horror as the distant shape of him grew larger and larger. He was coming back my way. And this time he was running.”
“I ran too.”
Creepypasta WikiThe Creepypasta finishes with the narrator saying they managed to make it home without seeing the Smiling Man again.
“I lived in that city for six months after that night, and I never went out for another walk. There was something about his face that always haunted me,” they wrote.
“He didn’t look drunk, he didn’t look high. He looked completely and utterly insane. And that’s a very, very scary thing to see.”
Just to reiterate, this story is completely fictional (even though the OP said it was real at the time), but there’s no denying how effective it is as a horror tale.
What makes it so terrifying is that, despite how sinister the situation is, the man never stops smiling – much like the chilling, distorted grins of the entities in Smile and Smile 2. There’s an element of realism that you don’t get with supernatural stories.
“That was so intensely frightening, blue_tidal,” said one Redditor in response to the story. “Extremely well-written; it stroked my creepy bone in just the right way!” Another said, “I am so glad I didn’t read this until AFTER my late night jog.”
“Read this in broad daylight and I’m chilled to the bone,” added a third, while a fourth said, “Freaking creepy. It’s always the real life ones that freak me out the most.”
You can watch The Smiling Man for free
It proved so popular, in fact, that filmmaker Michael Evans made a horror short based on the story, titled ‘2AM: The Smiling Man’.
You can check it out for free on YouTube (but be warned, there’s a slight edit that may give you a bit of a jump scare):
Alongside 15 million views, the short has received thousands of comments, with one writing, “‘He didn’t look drunk. He didn’t look high. He looked completely f**king insane.’ Well they certainly nailed that aspect of the story.”
Another said, “When he’s crouching and then he gets up and starts doing a walk like a ‘sneaky cartoon hunter’ type of thing, that’s a whole new level of psycho, if this was me in real life I would have died right there from a heart attack.”
“The creepy part of this for me is the fact that you wouldn’t really be prepared for anything like this,” added a third. “I feel like I would just freeze up, because it’s such a bizarre situation.”
Smile 2 drops in cinemas on October 18. Until then, check out the best movies to get kids into horror, the scariest flicks based on true stories, and how to watch the Terrifier movies in order ahead of the threequel.