“Long Time Listener” (2026) is a pulpy thriller that asks who is stalking true crime podcaster, Genesis Taylor (Meagan Holder), and why. Could it be her boss, Ruby (Lisha Wheeler), her chief competition, Elle (Danielle Nicolet, who also directs her first feature movie), her ex-lover and coworker, Carter (Lyriq Bent), or her best friend and cohost, Max (Cleo Berry)? This movie will keep you guessing but is it because it is structured well or just decided to do anything sensational even if it dropped out of the sky? Probably the latter but considering it is the kind of movie that you watch at home, it is a great reason to turn your brain off and watch some nonsense with pretty people and places.
“Long Time Listener” was filmed in Louisiana, and if you are looking for something that bears no resemblance to reality, definitely check it out. Most of the characters are casually lesbian or bi though there is plenty of heterosexual representation. Except for two characters, everyone is Black so that means the characters get to be people, and no serious events happen except for the wonton murder of course. It feels reminiscent of the “Scream” franchise because when the killer calls Genesis’ podcast, “Something to Stalk About,” the person uses a voice modulator, and the killer is often near the victim. It starts strong with the events leading up to the first murder paralleling the events described in the podcast episode that the victim is playing in the background.
The cast has solid chemistry, and the actors are pros so they can pull off “Long Time Listener,” the kind of movie that evokes the fantasy of what it is like to live in a city and work. Genesis’ workday is more like a hot five to ten minutes, and of course, her work is more like hanging out with her friends than any heavy lifting. There are only good vibes, not rivalry, between Elle and Genesis though Elle’s podcast, “Happiness is the Best Revenge,” has ascended to the top. It is easy to forget the story’s premise because it is otherwise an ideal world with little to no red flags. When Genesis realizes that she has a stalker, she initially sees it as manna from heaven because her show’s ratings are not doing well, and she wants to make sure that Max, her self-described “sassy friend,” keeps his researcher, cohost job.
Carter takes the threat seriously and clearly wants to protect Genesis, who is allergic to commitment, but he also acts sketchy thus putting him on the top of the list of possible suspects. It feels as if the story could go one of two ways: rejecting heteronormativity or embracing it depending on if Carter is the killer. If he is, it affirms that heterosexual relationships are the deviant ones. If he is not, then he is cleared as one of the good ones, and then Genesis can become safe if she embraces heteronormativity. Neither applies. After watching “Long Time Listener” and discovering the identity, if you rewatch the film, a lot of scenes do not make sense although some of the dialogue signal how the killer operates. The suspect wears a hoodie and appears as either a shadow or silhouette, and did another actor play the killer’s silhouette? It is always annoying when the identity is revealed when they are not wearing or doing anything remotely related to the murderer’s modus operandi for the entire movie. It happens in a lot of mystery movies, which is why I am not a fan of the genre, but it is done in such an over-the-top, outlandish way that it is possible to say, “It is not that deep,” and just keep it pushing.
The whole project kind of goes off the rails the point when the killer’s motivation is revealed. “Long Time Listener” could have worked if the killer was just obsessed with Genesis because of her fame, but nope. Cowriters John Doolan and Joe Narode do too much, but sometimes it is fun. It was hilarious how many characters carried concealed enormous gun, which would be dramatically pulled out at appropriate times and should have improved that characters’ safety, but the movie does adhere to the realism of gun statistics that your gun will be taken away from you if you own one. The real point of the movie is to do stuff that they want to see on screen. Logic be damned.
For instance, Genesis’ dad appears to keep her safe. He does not get a line or a name. He gets to sit next to her on the couch. Genesis is not one of those fatherless women thus her nocturnal habits cannot be written off as promiscuity, but sex positive. Her father is not a way to advance Genesis’ story or introduce a three-dimensional character. She talks to her mom on the phone, but her mom is never shown or heard. The killer stabs one person, and then they are fine and functional later. Elements are added but not followed through to their logical conclusion. Torrei Hart, a real-life famous podcast, appears in a cameo on her phone to comment on the stalking with one person and the killer watching her. Does it advance the story? No, but it will probably make her fans interested in watching the movie. It is less about cohesiveness and more about fun. It is television movie narrative quality, which is fair because it is straight to streaming.
“Long Time Listener” probably got a lot of interest because Nicolet, who was a beloved regular cast member on “The Flash,” is in it. How did she do in her directing debut? Great! She consistently created a creepy atmosphere of feeling watched throughout the film. The camera angles hinted at the twist. Nicolet’s work was better than the writing. Also shout out to whoever found that enormous house to film the opening. It is a great location. The use of technology was unexpected and welcomed though again there is missing connective tissue between the killer and how they presented as a normal person.
While “Long Time Listener” is a blast of shallow fun, it did feel like watching a perfect world then dumping a bucket of ice water on it. No one can have nice things. Everything is a lie. It is bleak on a bone deep level without feeling like it is, and it feels as if it is begging for a sequel, which would be interesting.
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One of the killers is the treacherous, ambitious gay character. The banter and story about the headless killer felt as if it was a reference to Jeffrey Dahmer. There are two killers who are presumably collaborating together, but the silhouette only looks like one of them and barely.
