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“The entire situation reeks like a cheap made-for-TV,” states an opportunistic commentator during the horror sequel Influencers. At that point, his tone is manipulatively dismissive of a guest with an bizarre tale he once claimed he believed. Yet his description of the events in the movie isn't inaccurate. On its face, two films on demand about a woman who insinuates herself into the lives of social media stars before killing them seems like a modern-day version of a lurid but cable-ready weekly TV movie. The surprising aspect about Influencers remains just how superior it proves to be than plenty of the competition, irrespective of where you watch it. It’s the kind of suspense film capable of giving its peers a serious bout of FOMO.

Revisiting the Original and Setting the Stage

2022’s Influencer tracks the mysterious CW (Cassandra Naud) while she quietly chooses traveling alone social media targets, entices them to their doom, and covers up those deaths (for a time) by seizing control of their socials. The movie concludes (spoiler ahead) with CW stranded on an uninhabited island near the coast of Thailand, after her most recent mark, Madison (Emily Tennant), reverses their roles against her.

This provides 2025's Influencers a degree of ambiguity, as returning filmmaker Kurtis David Harder resumes with the character CW happily living with her girlfriend Diane (Lisa Delamar) in Paris. On a journey marking their one-year anniversary, UK-based influencer Charlotte (Georgina Campbell) catches CW’s eye and ire.

CW remarks to Diane that someone should try stranding a phone-addicted online personality somewhere with no technology to see whether they can survive. Is this a backstory prequel? Was CW radicalized after witnessing the preferential treatment afforded a single fame-seeker?

Evolving Viewpoints and International Chases

The narrative viewpoint changes multiple times, ultimately revealing those early scenes’ place in the timeline. Harder catches up with Madison, now exonerated for carrying out CW’s crimes, yet still encounters suspicion over her version of what happened, which includes the murder of her boyfriend. The film also follows Jacob (Jonathan Whitesell), living in Bali and trying to boost his profile as half of a conservative-influencer duo with Ariana (Veronica Long), though his chosen platform involves masculine-focused livestreams, as opposed to the curated images that normally attract CW's interest.

The actor continues to be immensely captivating in the part, a role that appears particularly custom-fit for her talents. (She even created CW's striking wardrobe.) Although the follow-up's focus tips heavily toward CW — the original felt more equally divided between the two women — it still functions as a story of rival investigators, as Madison and CW both use fabricated profiles, Insta-stalking, and a seemingly limitless travel fund to pursue or evade one another. Of course, perhaps the unlimited budget isn’t necessary. Influencers have a knack for getting to explore posh places without paying much, an ability that CW echoes through her more blatant scamming.

Ingenious Filmmaking and Visual Wanderlust

The creative team for Influencers seem similarly ingenious about finding stunning locations to visit, although they were likely more legitimate about it. Most of the movie seems to be filmed in real places, providing it a real-world weight that lingers even when numerous sequences consist of a relatively small cast of characters looking at digital devices.

It follows the same logic that made the Bond franchise look so persistently lavish over the years: Yes, explosive action and visual effects can display large spending, however just providing a kind of visual tour for the audience also feels inherently cinematic. It’s also particularly appropriate for a story so rooted in the coexisting superficial glamour and desperate hustle of creating jealousy-worthy online content.

Every character visiting Bali, similar to those staying in Thailand in the original, appear to enjoy entry to unbelievably stylish contemporary villas; films exist about lifeguards which don't feature as much aerial pool footage. These individuals must believably inhabit these lush, remote places to emphasize the uncomfortable paradox of how often everyone — including the woman exacting revenge on the influencers’ self-centered phoniness — nevertheless devotes much time under the light of their devices.

Balanced Depictions and Digital-Age Suspense

At the same time, Harder hasn’t authored a rant against the vacuousness of online fame. While it can be gratifying to see CW exploit different internet celebrities, and a Hitchcockian sense of identification allows us to hope she doesn’t get caught, the filmmaker is somewhat understanding of the major influencer characters. Previously, he tapped into the loneliness Madison felt during ostensibly dream getaways. Here, the director appears confident that just observing Jacob in action will make it clear that he’s peddling snake-oil masculinity to other gullible men; he resists caricaturing the character. He even gives Jacob a degree of respect by showing his genuine loyalty to his girlfriend; he’s a hypocrite, yet Ariana is a partner in his hypocrisy, not a victim of it.

The other side of this balanced approach is that it can sometimes appear as if he’s nodding at elements of contemporary digital culture without deeply exploring them further. This is particularly evident regarding how he introduces artificial intelligence into the plot, a fascinating turn that lacks the psychological edge it deserves. The retitled sequel for the film might give devotees of the original hope for a larger-scale ante-upping, and the film does eventually provide exactly that, with an appropriately chaotic climax. But before that, it resembles more a sleek Hitchcock thriller than a frenzied, technology-obsessed De Palma-style shocker. Influencers’ heavy use of real-world locations might also be what prevents it from coming across like utter horror. Our society may be overrun with always-online creators, online fraud, and self-serving tourism, but the world itself remains present, at least for now.