Smile 2 made Skye Riley the star of the show, replacing Rose Cotter as the franchise’s lead, but it should’ve been Joel. The ending of Smile directly leads into the events of Smile 2, as the sequel shows Joel haunted by the Smile Curse six days after watching Rose burn to death in front of his eyes. However, Joel dies in Smile 2, allowing the curse to pass to Lewis so it could eventually find Skye Riley as its next victim. This decision made Naomi Scott’s character the main character of the sequel, following in the footsteps of Sophie Bacon.