Another way is to cut the block of cold cream cheese into small pieces and beat it with an electric mixer on high speed until it's smooth and creamy. (thespruce.com)
I started with cold cream cheese, so it make sense now! (topwithcinnamon.com)
You'll start with room temperature cream cheese — the temp of the cream cheese is important, as cold cream cheese right out of the fridge will typically render chunks or pieces of cream cheese in the filling. (delightfulemade.com)