2022’s Influencer was a surprising delight, nicely folding into the crazy bitch canon alongside the likes of The Hand That Rocks the Cradle or Poison Ivy, yet with a decidedly modern twist. Its serial killer used deepfakes and AI technology to quite literally become her victim, in a purely online sort of way. Now, with an ‘s’ tacked onto the end of its title, Influencers returns us to the twisted world of CW (Cassandra Naud) as if we never left in the first place. CW’s round two takes her to France, finding a new lease on life with a fresh love interest at her side. Also back for more is the majority of the creative team, including writer/director Kurtis David Harder (Spiral), widening the scope on the first film’s intimate brand of terror. Bigger and more biting in nearly every way, clever sequel Influencers escalates by shifting its focus to cancel culture and gaslighting while maintaining its mean girl core.
While a familiarity with the first feature (also from Shudder) is more of a recommendation than a requirement, Influencers feels infused with the same DNA from the very first frame. CW now goes by Catherine, having somehow escaped her island isolation and living it up in France with her girlfriend, Diane (Lisa Delamar). But CW’s psychotic tendencies have not gone away; rather, they are still lurking just beneath the surface. They threaten to smother CW’s new normal when a British influencer named Charlotte (Georgina Campbell) catches her eye. Is there room enough for three in their little bubble, or is Charlotte just another target for CW’s bloodlust?
More than once, Harder’s gear shifts flip the perspective in a refreshing way. This keeps the movie from ever going stale, not that it would anyway even if told in a linear fashion. Madison (Emily Tennant) returns from the first film, having had multiple murders pinned on her and being cancelled altogether by the internet. She has gone from being a semi-successful influencer to completely off the radar. With no record or trace of CW anywhere, Madison has been unable to corroborate her own recounting of events. We follow a Madison desperate to clear her name, a very evolved version that Tennant imbues with a renewed sense of purpose.
The cat and mouse between these two characters is particularly compelling, given the toxicity of their relationship. One gets two steps ahead, then the other catches pace. As Madison races to piece together clues leading to CW’s whereabouts, CW retracts as her curated life begins to slip through her fingers. Tying together the two threads of story are two more influencers: ripped douche, Jacob (Jonathan Whitesell), and his conservative girlfriend, Ariana (Veronica Long). Their addition adds an extra push/pull for both Madison and CW—one of them genuinely killed people, but who can be believed? Whitesell plays against type, managing to leave an impression beyond the vapid livestream videos.
Influencers does more to humanize CW, and thankfully it never forgets that the Madison/CW element remains a vital component. This movie is far more than just pitting two women against each other. It gives both nearly equal screentime, and when the nasty horrors begin to happen, they are just as gnarly as one would hope. The tone finds a delicate balance between campy 90s thriller and compelling drama. Harder crafts another great film that adds further texture to what came before. An evolution of ideas and further maniacal mayhem from CW (not the channel) leave Influencers coming out on top of the charts.
Influencers debuted at 2025’s Fantasia International Film Festival.
