SMILE 2 movie poster | ©2024 Paramount Pictures

In screenwriting lore, there is a character often referred to as “Morris the Explainer.” This is the person who shows up in the story to deliver the exposition that there’s just no other way of providing to either the other characters or the audience.

In SMILE 2, which opened in theatres on Friday, October 18, that character is literally named Morris. Played by Peter Jacobson, he’s the one who relates the workings of a malevolent supernatural entity to troubled pop star Skye Riley (Naomi Scott).

We first encountered the viral curse demon in 2022’s SMILE which, like SMILE 2, is written and directed by Parker Finn. The new film begins with the notation “six days later,” assuming the audience has seen the first film and knows what happened six days ago in the SMILE universe. For those who missed it, suffice to say that the body-jumping spirit found a new host who, unfortunately for Skye, is someone she knows.

SMILE 2’s Morris is something of a departure for Jacobson. Originally from Chicago, the actor is perhaps best known for his series regular role as Dr. Chris Taub on HOUSE. He’s also played lawyers on multiple episodes of LAW & ORDER, LAW & ORDER: SVU, and RAY DONOVAN, the human liaison between hostile aliens and the people of Los Angeles over four seasons of COLONY, and a rabbi on FEAR THE WALKING DEAD.

In an interview years ago, Jacobson said, “Hollywood has very specific ideas about who you are and what you do, especially when you look a very specific way. I am the agent, I am the lawyer, I am the doctor. As long as the roles are good, I don’t care. I am almost always wearing a tie and a coat. I’ve become really good at wearing a tie. If educated characters are what I’m destined to play, again, as long as they’re good, smart, interesting, funny characters, I don’t care.”

When Jacobson gets on a Zoom call to talk SMILE 2 with ASSIGNMENT X, he says he still stands by the above statement. “It’s true. The bulk of the roles that I’ve played have been professionals and doctors and lawyers, but there are a range of personalities within that scope that yet get to play as an actor. But since then, I’ve also been proved wrong, and played roles that aren’t like that. Morris is definitely a different character.”

SMILE 2’s Morris is, bluntly, scruffy. He is an ER nurse, but he’s been on a personal quest for a while when we meet him, and looks like he hasn’t had a chance to shower or shave lately.

Jacobson explains, “Morris appealed to me right away, because he’s this down and out guy, he’s this mysterious outsider, he’s been through the wringer. He’s a nurse, but he’s definitely not like a lot of the parts that I have played, and that’s what drew me to him right away. I love him. He’s very compassionate, and he’s had a hard time, and he’s trying to work it through to help Skye in this movie, and it’s a great character. I love how different he is.”

Actor PETER JACOBSON | ©2024 photographer Luke Fontana

Jacobson had not seen the first SMILE in its opening run, “But when I got the audition for Morris, I promptly watched the first one, just to get a sense of that world, if that’s possible [laughs]. Not really, because the second movie, as you’ll see, or as you’ve seen and people will see, it takes the first one and explodes it twenty-fold. It’s a very different world. But yeah, I just read the script and loved the world right away. It just spoke to me, and fortunately, Parker and I clicked, and here I went.”

It’s hard to discuss the plot of SMILE 2 without getting into spoiler territory, but it can be revealed without ruining anything that Morris is a good researcher. Did Jacobson have to learn anything in order to play that aspect of the character?

Jacobson thinks the question is funny. “How do you research researching? I remember when I first started playing Dr. Taub, I was very much immersed myself, off-set, in doing whatever kind of research an actor can do on plastic surgeons and doctors and what that’s like. You want to be as in the world as you can possibly be.

“So, there was some thought and some work for me on some of the medical terms that come into play in the movie, the knowledge that I have, that I’m so confident in. I certainly read as in-depth on that as I possibly could, and learned as much as I possibly could, from reading, from people I know in the medical community, and what the scope is in terms of the reality of what I’m trying to do.

“Again, he’s somebody who is voracious in his need to know what’s happening, and to research this terror. There’s no real research on the books for that, but certainly what I could connect to and think about and try to embody was somebody who was obsessed, and that’s something that was fun to play.”

The beard Jacobson has as Morris is his own, rather than something applied by the hair and makeup department. Jacobson reveals that he grew it specifically for the character.

“I’m not a beard-wearer. It wasn’t as full as I can get, but we did discuss what the look should be, and I had said, ‘I think the bottom line is, Morris hasn’t shaved in a while.’ He’s an inconsistent shaver. He’s obsessed with the research, and he’s lost, and for me, that’s somebody who doesn’t think a lot about how he looks and what he’s wearing, and certainly, shaving is not something he’s really going to think about. I could have grown it as long as possible, but there was something about it sort of being half-there, maybe he shaved once, and didn’t again for weeks, and then did, and then didn’t. So, that’s what I was going for.”

Jacobson has played a demon himself in the 2019 fantasy film LIMBO, which is a variation on THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER. However, the demons in that film were more like lawyers who happened to work in Hell than SMILE 2’s hellish being.

So, does Jacobson have any thoughts about the varied depictions of demons in projects he’s done?

The actor poses an existential question in response. “What is a demon? Demons come in all shapes and sizes. You can be a demon in your intention. There are a lot of different ways that it gets expressed, it gets written, and these were two very different films. But it’s certainly interesting to either be playing a character who is demonic, or demon-adjacent. I haven’t been in a position where I’ve looked at a clichéd demon role. Fortunately, the demon I played was an interesting character that didn’t seem so demonic.”

Jacobson has been in a number of horror projects. Is this a genre he particularly likes, or is it just that he’s gotten hired for them?

With a laugh, Jacobson says he hasn’t really thought about it in those terms, but “It’s mostly just, I’ve just gotten hired. I hadn’t thought about it. I did this movie, THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN. That was a while ago [based on the Clive Barker short story, starring Bradley Cooper] before he was really Bradley Cooper. He was an incredibly generous, wonderful actor to work with.

“And I was on FEAR THE WALKING DEAD for a few seasons, and had my share of zombie kills. There are the medical horrors that I experienced in HOUSE. But this is the first time I’ve ever had a substantial role in a real horror film. I love it. It’s fascinating and exciting, and it’s a great world to act in, because usually, the stakes are through the roof, and the needs are very great, and the stress is high.

“Again, I’m looking for great characters and great projects, and this was one, so I was thrilled to be a part of it, and if there are more horror films down the line that are as well-written, and as well-made, and the characters are that good, then I’m on board.”

How was working with SMILE 2 lead Scott?

Fabulous. As you saw, this is her film. She carries a level of emotion and terror that is just through the roof. In the first movie, Sosie [Bacon] was so great, and put that on her shoulders for two hours of that kind of stress and terror. SMILE 2 explodes everything on a much grander scale.

“Naomi is playing this character who is so huge, on so many levels, and the emotions are so high, and the terror is so high, and yet, she’s so grounded, and that’s why she is terrifying, and the movie is terrifying, is simply because she’s so human in it. That’s not easy to do as an actress, and she does an amazing job. She’s a total joy to work with. I had not met her before. She’s as generous and as graceful and as sweet and welcoming as she is talented, and that is saying a lot.”

What is filmmaker Finn like?

“Horrible. It was a miserable experience,” Jacobson grouses, then laughs. “I’m kidding. He’s fantastic, too. It’s a relentless film, and he works relentlessly in it. It’s pretty amazing what he’s accomplished. The first film, he exploded into a genre that’s a crowded field, and he stood out with this first film.

“He has an incredibly unique vision as a filmmaker. He creates a space filmically that carries Naomi’s work that much further. And he, like Naomi, is just welcoming and generous, and so intensely there, and in every moment, and he’s created these very human characters, and he fortunately wants to be in there, in the muck with you, working on it and making sure that it really moves forward.”

Is Finn very hands-on, or does he prefer that the actors to show him their ideas and then tweak the performances from there?

“The best directors are a combination of both,” Jacobson opines. “There are directors who can be very overbearing in how specific they want things to be. And at the same time, it’s my job as an actor to deliver the performance that the director wants, but the director also has cast me because he wants my vision. So, how do you find that balance?

“It’s a dance, and I’ve always found that the best directors are those who are very clear with their vision, down to very specific details, and who, while asking for that, and working towards that, are also accepting and wanting and pulling out more of my vision at the same time. So, [SMILE 2] was just a pleasure to work on, because Parker gets that instinctively, and I love the back and forth, and so does he. He’s great in that way.”

As Scott’s Skye Riley is a music star, she has song and dance numbers, but there are also moments of horror that are staged like sequences from a Bob Fosse musical. “I’m telling you, Parker went for it. It’s not just a horror movie, it’s really developed in a lot of different areas. It’s almost like a dance itself. It’s a huge, multifaceted horror film that the big screen will serve best.”

As for future projects, Jacobson relates, WELCOME TO THE FISHBOWL is an independent film that I wrapped a few weeks ago. Jeremy Swift and Marin Hinkle and Natalie Gold are in this movie. It’s a wonderful, fun comic adventure kind of film. So that’s coming down the line.”

And what else would Jacobson like people to know about SMILE 2?

“I’m hearing reviews are fabulous already, and I’m not surprised. If you liked the first one, you’re going to just go nuts for this one. See in in the theatre. Don’t delay, don’t wait. I appreciate the fun of cuddling up with a loved one for a horror film, but this is a really big experience.

“It’s a very big, terrifying film that’s really beautifully acted, and it’s a story that’s really well-told. Parker’s vision is big, his filming is big, Naomi’s performance is massive, and you really should see it amongst people, and let that communal terror experience be the thing that you get.”

Related: Movie Review: SMILE 2

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Article: SMILE 2: Actor Peter Jacobson on starring in the new Parker Finn directed sequel

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