Parker Finn
Parker J. Finn (born March 18, 1987) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for creating the Smile franchise. He wrote and directed the horror films Smile (2022) and its sequel Smile 2 (2024).
Early life
Finn was born on March 18, 1987, in Bath, Ohio.[1][2] He attended the University of Colorado Boulder, then attended Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, where he received a screenwriting MFA in 2011.[3][4]
Career
Finn's 2018 short film The Hidebehind screened at Panic Fest and the Portland Horror Film Festival in 2019.[5][6] Finn filmed Laura Hasn't Slept at Chapman University Dodge College of Film and Media Art's Stage B. The short won the Special Jury Award at SXSW 2020.[4] Finn's first feature film, Smile, was based on his short film Laura Hasn't Slept.[7] Smile became 2022's top grossing original horror film.[8] In 2023, Finn entered a multi-year first-look deal with Paramount Pictures to write, produce, and direct additional feature films.[8] That same year, he founded the production company Bad Feeling.[9] He returned to write and direct Smile 2, which was released in 2024.[10] In June 2024, it was reported that Finn would write and direct a remake of the 1981 psychological horror film Possession.[11]
Filmography
Feature films
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Smile | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | Template:No | Directorial debut |
| 2024 | Smile 2 | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | Template:Yes |
Short films
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | The Hidebehind | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | Template:No | |
| 2020 | Laura Hasn't Slept | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | Template:Yes |
Actor
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Smile 2 | Photographer | |
| 2025 | The Studio | Himself | Episode: The War |
References
External links
Template:US-film-director-1980s-stub Template:US-screen-writer-stub
This article incorporates text from the Wikipedia article "Parker Finn", available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.Retrieved 2026-03-05.
- 1987 births
- Living people
- 21st-century American male writers
- 21st-century American screenwriters
- American male screenwriters
- American horror film directors
- Chapman University alumni
- Film directors from Ohio
- People from Bath Township, Summit County, Ohio
- Screenwriters from Ohio
- University of Colorado Boulder alumni