With superhero films dominating the box office, it can be hard for non-Marvel or DC films to get much attention. Olivia Wilde's newest film, Don't Worry Darling, has broken through the noise, but its attention has been, shall we say, less than positive. Executives at Paramount had a different idea to get people talking about their newest film, Smile.
Last Friday, Paramount sent out background actors to stand right behind home plate at MLB games wearing bright shirts reading "Smile." The actors were also told to do their creepiest smile, apparently, because fans were thoroughly freaked out by what they saw on their sports broadcasts.
There were a lot of big games in baseball Friday, including Dodgers vs. Cardinals, Yankees vs. Red Sox, and Mets vs. A's. At all of these matchups, fans spotted actors standing in the crowd with their frozen smiles. One woman at the Mets game was so distracting that a security guard had to approach her. The background actors seemed very committed to the bit, as most of them never wavered, just staring at the camera smiling.
Smile is set to be released next week, and is a horror movie following a doctor who has a traumatic experience and begins to be haunted by terrifying visages. The film is going up against a new rom-com from Billy Eichner, Bros, as well as a re-released Avatar. It's stiff competition, so perhaps the folks at Paramount felt they really needed something viral. Seems like they might have found what they were looking for.
[via]