Glasgow film to have a sequel with original cast returning

First released in 1996, Small Faces told the story of the Glasgow gang the Tongs in the 1960s and was filmed on location across the city as well as in Bishopbriggs and Edinburgh.

It is credited with launching the careers of Trainspotting’s Kevin McKidd, The Missing star Laura Fraser and River City’s Iain Robertson.

Iain wondering what the fate of his character might be all these years later put the wheels in motion for a ‘follow-on’ film, Smile.

Iain Robertson (Image: Newsquest)

Iain said: “I had never properly played a recurring character until I went into River City, but weirdly, the character’s life starts to exist alongside your own.

“In the downtime from filming, you start to wonder to yourself – how is Stevie, my character, getting on, what will he have been up to?

“I got to thinking about significant characters I had played over the years and I started to ponder what Lex would have been up to, so I emailed Gillies and Billy to ask them and here we are!”

Original director Gillies MacKinnon is on board along with his brother, scriptwriter Billy MacKinnon, who is tackling the first draft of the script of the project.

The pair have stressed that this will be no ordinary sequel. 

Gillies said: “Smile is not Small Faces 2, it is a different film, with a different tone and in a different era, but based upon the drama left off a quarter of a century earlier.

“This is a self-contained film and the viewer need not have seen the original to enjoy Smile as a film in its own right.

“In a way, it is a Glasgow ghost story – a story of redemption.

“Iain‘s character, Lex was a wee boy who felt responsible for his own brother’s murder on a Glasgow ice rink.

“Now, turning 40, Lex is suddenly faced with his dead brother’s resurrection, as a ghost, an apparition, or a reality, he can’t know, but one thing is beyond question – Bobby, played by Stephen Duffy, has returned from the dead!”

Kevin McKidd in Small Faces (Image: Newsquest)

Stephen – who became lifelong friends with Iain after meeting on the set of the film – is intrigued to see his character return, as is Kevin McKidd as both of their characters died in Small Faces. 

He said: “The depiction of my character’s death was pretty powerful in cinematic terms.

“I haven’t seen a script yet and obviously I’m very curious to discover how I might be involved, but there’s talk of this film being a ghost story.

“I’m absolutely up for haunting Iain!”

Grey’s Anatomy actor Kevin added: “I loved working with our cast and crew back in the day, but given that Malky, my character, also died in Small Faces, it’s hugely intriguing to hear that there’s talk of my involvement.”