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“Everything about this smells of a cheap TV movie,” remarks an opportunistic commentator midway through the horror sequel Influencers. At that point, he’s being dismissive in a calculated way toward an interviewee with an bizarre tale he previously said he trusted. But his description of the events in the movie isn’t wrong. On its face, two films on demand about a young woman who insinuates herself into the worlds of social media stars before killing them seems like the 21st-century equivalent of a tawdry but network-approved weekly TV movie. The surprising aspect regarding Influencers is how much better it proves to be compared to much of its competition, regardless of screen size. It’s the kind of thriller that should give its peers a serious bout of FOMO.

Recapping the Original and Setting the Stage

2022’s Influencer follows the enigmatic CW (Cassandra Naud) while she quietly chooses solo-traveling influencer targets, lures them to their doom, and covers up those deaths (at least temporarily) by seizing control of their online accounts. 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), turns the tables on her.

This lends 2025's Influencers a degree of mystery, as returning filmmaker the director picks up with CW happily living with her girlfriend Diane (Lisa Delamar) in Paris. On a journey to celebrate their first anniversary, British influencer Charlotte (Georgina Campbell) catches CW’s eye and ire.

CW remarks to Diane that someone should try stranding a phone-addicted online personality in a place with no technology to see whether they can survive. Are we witnessing a backstory prequel? Did CW become extremist by seeing the preferential treatment afforded a single clout-chaser?

Shifting Perspectives and International Chases

The story’s perspective changes multiple times, ultimately revealing those introductory moments' place in the timeline. The story revisits Madison, who has been cleared of carrying out CW’s crimes, yet still encounters doubt regarding her recounting of what happened, including the killing of Madison’s boyfriend. The film also follows Jacob (Jonathan Whitesell), based in Bali and trying to boost his profile as half of a right-wing-influencer power couple alongside Ariana (Veronica Long), although his preferred medium involves masculine-focused livestreams, rather than the Instagram photos that normally capture CW’s attention.

The actor continues to be immensely captivating in her role, which seems particularly tailor-made for her talents. (She also designed CW's eye-catching outfits.) While the follow-up's screentime balance leans heavily into CW — the original felt more equally divided between the two women — it still works as a tale of rival amateur detectives, with both women employ fake accounts, social media surveillance, and an apparently limitless travel fund to pursue or evade each other. Then again, perhaps the vast resources isn’t necessary. Online personalities possess a talent for gaining access to posh places without paying much, a skill which CW mirrors through her more blatant scamming.

Resourceful Production and Cinematic Travelogue

The filmmakers behind Influencers seem similarly ingenious about finding stunning locations to visit, although they were likely less nefarious about it. Most of the film appears to be shot on location, providing it a real-world weight that lingers even as many scenes involve a handful of actors of characters looking at digital devices.

It follows the same logic that made the Bond franchise look so consistently opulent over the years: Yes, explosive action and special effects can display a big budget, however simply offering a travelogue of sorts to viewers also seems inherently cinematic. This is particularly appropriate for a narrative so rooted in the simultaneous surface-level allure and try-hard grind of creating jealousy-worthy digital content.

Every character visiting Bali, similar to those who were in Thailand in the original, appear to enjoy entry to unbelievably stylish contemporary villas; films exist concerning beach rescuers which don't feature as much aerial pool footage. The characters have to convincingly occupy these luxurious, remote places to emphasize the uncomfortable paradox of how frequently everyone — including the woman wreaking vengeance upon the online stars' self-centered phoniness — nonetheless spends plenty of time under the light of their screens.

Balanced Depictions and Tech-Savvy Tension

At the same time, the director has not crafted a screed against the vacuousness of online fame. Though it is gratifying to see CW exploit different internet celebrities, and a Hitchcockian sense of alignment allows us to wish she evades capture, Harder is somewhat sympathetic to the key influencer figures. In the first movie, he tapped into the isolation Madison experienced while on supposedly envy-worthy vacations. In this film, 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 avoids caricaturing the character further. He even gives Jacob a degree of respect through depicting his genuine loyalty to his partner; he’s a hypocrite, but Ariana is a partner in his hypocrisy, not someone exploited by it.

The other side of Harder’s even-keeled presentation is that it can sometimes appear as if he is acknowledging elements of modern online life without investigating them. This is especially true regarding how he introduces artificial intelligence into the story, an intriguing development that lacks the psychosexual kick it should have. The retitled sequel of Influencers could offer fans of the first movie expectations of a larger-scale ante-upping, and the movie ultimately delivers that, with a suitably wild final act. But before that, it’s more like a sleek Alfred Hitchcock movie than an frenzied, technology-obsessed Brian De Palma thriller. Influencers’ heavy use of actual places might also be what keeps it from coming across like pure nightmare fuel. The world may be overrun with always-online creators, digital deception, and exploitative travel, but reality itself is still here, for now.