‘Influencers’ Review: The Slick Sequel Continues to Take Down Social Media

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Imagine Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley with access to today’s AI and deepfake technology – the possibilities for trouble are frightening. Director Kurtis David Harder explores this idea in his new thriller, Influencers, a follow-up to his well-received 2022 film, Influencer. The story continues a year later, following Cassandra Naud as she travels to the south of France. Her peaceful vacation is disrupted when a spoiled social media personality triggers her dangerous impulses.

Harder’s latest film feels more assured than his previous work, featuring even more visually appealing settings and a more intricate storyline. While his confidence sometimes leads to unbelievable scenarios, particularly regarding the character CW’s online skills, it mostly adds to the film’s lighthearted entertainment. Like his earlier film Influencer, this one doesn’t offer a deeply critical look at internet culture, though it does include some sharp observations and political commentary. Ultimately, the film’s success rests on Naud’s performance, as she clearly relishes her role, and the audience does too. It’s so enjoyable that a third film, set in another exotic location, would be entirely welcome.

A key part of what makes these films interesting is that we never quite understand the motives of the character CW, other than her tendency to kill people who are popular on social media. This latest installment, Influencers, keeps that mystery alive, showing CW happily and safely with her girlfriend, Diane. For their anniversary, they travel to a small town in France and book a romantic getaway. The writer, Harder, cleverly links social media fame to a sense of privilege when their hotel room is given away to a particularly annoying British influencer, Charlotte. Throughout the series, it’s never been about celebrating these killings or feeling responsible for the fame of these influencers, which has been a little frustrating. However, when CW does take revenge on these so-called celebrities, it does add some excitement to the story.

A positive aspect of the new film is that Harder has new people to attack. These new targets appear with Madison (Emily Tennant), who survived the first movie and even left CW stranded in Thailand. Back in America, trying to move on with her life, Madison is wrongly accused of CW’s crimes by online detectives, despite being cleared by the police. Even a simple podcast interview turns hostile when the hosts question her whereabouts, immediately followed by an advertisement for Strong Ape VPN with jungle noises. Desperate, Madison sees CW on Instagram and travels to France to confront the person who destroyed her life.

David Schuurman’s beautiful cinematography captures the scenery of France, and his use of drone footage adds visual appeal, culminating in a particularly clever final shot. The film also showcases the beauty of Bali, where Madison meets Jacob, a man trying to emulate the online personality of Andrew Tate. While the series generally points out aspects of online culture without deeply analyzing them, it clearly portrays a negative view of Jacob, who spouts hateful rhetoric he doesn’t even seem to believe. He’s largely controlled by his girlfriend, Ariana, who cultivates his online image and is presented as a rising conservative influencer, warning about a supposed threat to children from “gender ideology.” Jacob initially tries to use Madison to gain more views, but he becomes caught in the middle as she moves towards a confrontation with CW.

The new installment cleverly references the original film—starting with a character dying early on and delaying the opening credits—establishing some familiar hallmarks. The director also smartly expands on the personalities of CW and Madison, keeping us interested without revealing everything. A lot of the mystery revolves around how CW manages her elaborate, tech-based schemes. In fact, if she ever decided to change careers, her skills would be incredibly valuable to companies like OpenAI or Amazon’s Alexa—though they are admittedly a little over the top.

The Influencer series has potential for more biting satire, but it seems the creators are happy sticking with stunning locations, incredibly fit characters, plenty of violence, and a relentless pursuit between the two leads. As it stands, Influencers delivers on its promises and even offers a mild critique of online culture – all for the cost of a Shudder subscription. Now that we know where Season 4 of The White Lotus will be filmed, we can start speculating about where Madison and CW will travel next.

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2025-12-09 04:22