“Influencers” (2025) is the sequel to “Influencer” (2024), which introduced a new villain, CW (Cassandra Naud), who befriended unsuspecting solo women travelers with a high social media follower count, killed them then ruined their online presence. Well, she is back, and her only surviving victim, Madison White (Emily Tennant), is motivated to exonerate herself of suspicion that she is the killer. Now CW is known as Catherine Weaver, where in the world did she go, and has she changed her wicked ways? Director and writer Kurtis David Harder is still at the helm of this unexpected franchise and gets more right than wrong though the film loses the poignant humanity in the first film. Warning: there may be spoilers from the first film.
What makes “Influencers” genuinely engrossing? Harder knows what to keep: the long anticipation of when the credits will roll, the ability to capture the paradise of life abroad now contrasted with the dour life at home, and the fearlessness of making an evil woman character and trusting that the audience can handle it. Lately films have rehabilitated wicked women from “Another Simple Favor” (2025) and “Megan 2.0” (2025). Harder knows how to celebrate women’s rights and wrongs without pulling punches, and he manages to make CW even worse. If people want to complain about having another sinister lesbian character, it would be fair, but hopefully she is so fabulous that moviegoers will be willing to sign a waiver.
Naud is still in fine form and should get to play this role as often as she wants. She really is the gold standard for wicked women, especially with the stunt work. Harder wisely does not offer much backstory on the character except that CW was a computer science major. Horror fans love an inexplicable psycho. It does not mean that Naud and Harder did not flesh out the character more, and the added information aligns with the first film instead of undermining it unlike other sequels. In the first film, one of her victims asks if she has ever been in a relationship. “Influencers” decides to show what her relationship looks like, and the biggest surprise is that it goes well until an annoying, unfortunate influencer, Charlotte Smith (Georgina Campbell), becomes a third wheel and keeps thwarting CW’s romantic plans. Turns out that her secret past is more of an addiction, a compulsion and mission: to rid the world of influencers. Her partner, Diane (Lisa Delamar), pegs her as jealous. Touché.
Unfortunately for Diane, CW slips into her old ways, and Diane notices the difference like a neglected spouse being ignored. Harder decides to rewind late in “Influencers” to show how those two crazy kids got together, and it felt unnecessary verging on redundant. There is a more intriguing idea of how CW uses her technical expertise to satisfy her social needs that is more atmosphere than a deeply explored theme but holds promise for the future, especially considering how Naud shows CW as putting on a show of normalcy, i.e. masking, to make her relationship work. It is like a glimpse into her inner world. It feels as if there is potential for another sequel though the premise is getting more far-fetched considering the events of this film. After all, there are no answers regarding how CW survived the first film so if that is a deal breaker, you will be disappointed. It does feel as if future movies may plunge CW back with her family in the US.
Unlike the first film, “Influencers” shares CW’s dim opinion of the titular profession. None of them are likable or humanized other than Madison, who is no longer in the biz, but a regular degular person. Tennant has red instead of blonde hair, and despite working a job at the mall, has the finances to launch her own personal woman hunt for CW. She must have saved her money during her heyday. We love a frugal, saving queen. Initially it seems as if Madison will get more screen time as the Jamie Lee Curtis of the franchise, but after her reintroduction, she is easily forgotten because of how little screentime she gets after she is reintroduced. Tennant makes the most of it, but the thread gets dropped though it was a good one with CW and Madison sharing a connection kind of like Will Graham in “Manhunter” (1986), but then Madison does dumb stuff like stand over dead bodies without ever calling the authorities. If the sequel has an issue, it is over relying on the Seventies sitcom era trope of people mistakenly accusing one person of something that another did to increase laughs and tension.
Harder definitely cranks up the camp factor and also aims for political commentary with an influencer couple, red pilled manosphere blogger Jacob Sullivan (Jonathan Whitesell, who initially resembles Christian Bale in “American Psycho” if he chose a different career and went on vacation) and his disinterested girlfriend, Ariana Winters (Veronica Long), who is living proof that he does not practice what he preaches and is a chilly mate though she is genuinely into him although she has a funny way of showing it. The fact that they are into each other despite their unconventional sexual predilections is not as firm a humanizing bedrock, but more like a laughing at them situation.
Unlike the first film, the guy’s story is not as strong as the girls, so the three-legged stool of a narrative is shakier this time around. Also in the first film, CW’s victims did so much right and still died. This time, Harder is aiming for satire and ghoulish glee over literally skewering awful people (go off, king), but while appreciated in theory and spirit, makes for a less compelling film. Some twists and turns require some Herculean levels of disbelief. Congratulations are due for “Influencers” shaking up the formula, and a lot of people are hungry for catharsis against what these characters represent, but it is inconsistent. Until the closing, it almost goes off the rails, but it does not and is well worth the ride. Harder stuck the landing.
If you are one of those people who enjoys watching movies to live vicariously through the people onscreen, “Influencers” is your kind of movie. Harder clearly had a bigger budget. Going from the South of France to Bali, Indonesia, his characters are jetsetters. Harder also offers more variety regarding how he tells the story. No longer restricted to Facetime and Instagram, he uses video blogging, and it keeps the proceedings moving if it is not Jacob in front of the screen. Harder has zero female nudity and some male, but the film never feels like it, and you may not notice unless you pay attention because there are a lot of sexual situations. Lots of clever blocking to keep that rating low.
“Influencers” may be doing too much and is over the top, but it does not jump the shark or do the expected. It feels like a big swing that should mostly connect with audiences, and its well-intentioned new plot points involving new quotidian villains will probably work with many viewers. If it does, then they should make it a double feature with “Silent Night, Deadly Night” (2025), though this film is way better.
