Yes, That's Jack Nicholson's Son Ray Channeling His Dad's Creepy Grin inSmile 2

Mar. 15, 2025

Jack Nicholson in “The Shining” (1980); Ray Nicholson in “Smile 2” (2024).Photo:Warner Bros.; Paramount Pictures

Warner Bros.; Paramount Pictures

Ray Nicholsonis his real-life dadJack Nicholson’s doppelganger inSmile 2.

Ray sports a creepy smile in some scenes, harkening back to his Oscar-winning father Jack’s iconic grin and stare in another horror flick,The Shining.

Smilewriter-director Parker Finn, who has written an entireessay aboutThe Shiningbeing his favorite horror filmof all time, toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat he took inspiration from Stanley Kubrick’s famous “stare” for the smiling in the new films.

“Sometimes the actors show up clearly really prepared, like I can tell they’ve been at home studying in the mirror, and other times it takes a little more coaching,” he said of their smirking close-ups.

Jack Nicholson in “The Shining” (1980).Warner Brothers/Getty Images

Warner Brothers/Getty Images

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“I find what you want to do is smile actually in a friendly way; you don’t want to over-exaggerate it, you don’t want to strain your face, but it’s all about disconnecting the eyes from the smile, and then about how you position the head.”

He added, “There’s a bit of a head tilt that happens; there’s the famous ‘Kubrick Stare,’ we sort of leaned into that idea, and then it becomes all about the filmmaking tools."

Ray told the outlet he did his smiling scenes in one single take. As he said toDeadline, he spent his life around his movie-star father, observing him and taking notes.

“We’re very different people,” saidRay, who is one of Jack’s six kids. “… Obviously, I love him. He’s my inspiration. I ate dinner with him every night. I studied it, that’s how I learned to be a human being. So of course we’re gonna be kind of similar.”

Ray Nicholson on Oct. 14, 2024.Paul Archuleta/Getty Images

Paul Archuleta/Getty Images

The star, who has followed in Jack’s Hollywood footsteps in previous roles inFear the Nightand the seriesPanic, added, “I love him. He’s also my hero. I’m the luckiest kid in the world.”

Raysaid onCBS Morningsthat he doesn’t frequently discuss acting advice with his father. “My dad and I don’t talk that much about acting. … I think it’s important for me to find my way,” he said.

Ray joked that his mom Rebecca Broussard once joked to him, “‘Ray, you were such a beautiful boy, and then you started to look like your father.'”

Smile 2is in theaters now.

source: people.com