You can’t fix her. After escaping from the island in Thailand, CW (Cassandra Naud) has made a new life in Southern France. Now known as “Catherine,” the enigmatic and dangerous nomad has found love in the form of Diane (Lisa Delamar). They’ve made it for one full year and are celebrating their anniversary in a posh hotel. CW has planned this getaway for months, and it angers her when the luxurious room she booked is given to prominent influencer Charlotte (Georgina Campbell) at the last minute, forcing a downgrade to a smaller space.

CW bristles at Charlotte’s continued efforts to befriend her and Diane, and she’s agitated further at the idea of Diane vibing with her boo, for CW hates influencers and what they stand for. Like before, CW takes matters into her own hands. The Charlotte problem is dealt with, but what CW is unprepared for is the return of Madison (Emily Tennant), the survivor and ex-influencer who CW nearly took everything away from. She doesn’t want anyone else to suffer the trauma and fallout she had to deal with.

I found 2023’s Influencer to be a pleasant, albeit surface-level, surprise. The direct dig at influencer culture felt as shallow as the target group highlighted. That said, it was a scenic thrill ride with an alluring lead performance that buoyed the entire film. I had no idea there was a sequel released until weeks ago. Influencers largely stays in between the lines its predecessor drew (it even introduces its title card around the same time and in a similar fashion), but there is a little more depth this time around and a lot more chaos in the mix.

Helming the follow up again is Kurtis David Harder. At minimum, his two movies are beautiful postcards in visual form, not a bad thing when you’re viewing during the peak of winter. Shot on location in Bali, Indonesia and Southern France gives the production a vibrancy and globetrotter-like feel, particularly in the latter half. Harder shows off some noticeable chops this go-around in a memorable hand-to-hand sequence. Obviously, it’s far from something seen in the likes of John Wick and The Raid, but he films it in an impressively fluid way by using nearly every inch of the expansive home.

In Influencers, Harder’s script better explores the parasocial relationship between creators and the followers who engage—and drive—what the content looks like. It’s never enough to maintain your follower count; if you ain’t growing em, you must stage drastic actions and/or say incendiary stuff that goes against your “beliefs.” Semantically, his sequel story doesn’t really follow influencers, and if reading between the lines, makes the assertion that influencer culture is slowly dying and is—or, already has been—replaced by live streaming. This shift makes Influencers more timelier than its preceding film, and should there be a third installment, I’d expect Harder to tap into wherever social media activity is booming at that moment.

Influencers isn’t the tightest story though. The movie invites questions, everything from how CW escaped that island, to the advanced skills she possesses in AI engineering, and where Madison got the money post-influencing to go overseas and play gumshoe. CW’s actions seem to be rooted in control issues, but there’s still some missing details in her character’s background and how she’s become what the flicks position her as. However, what helps the movie is its neutral tone. It’s far from a farce but nowhere near completely dour, either. What Influencers reestablishes is that Naud has legitimate star power, if not as a mainstream movie star, at least one who at minimum should make a consistent living as a stalwart in these types of soft horror/thriller features. This time around, Tennant’s character receives more expansion and manages to be more than just a plot driver.

Through two installments, the Influencer movies have found a following. Using “guilty pleasure” is probably the best description, even if I believe there are real quality aspects in Harder’s films. In any event, sign me up for a 3rd, whether that’s titled Influencerss, Influ3ncer, or my ideal possible favorite, Influencer: Slay.

B-

Influencers is currently streaming on Shudder.

Photo credits go to impawards.com, polygon.com, IMDB.com, and people.com.