The first chapter in The Strangers reboot trilogy offered a mostly by-the-numbers, safe retread that at least instilled curiosity for the subsequent chapters once unshackled from its source material. With the remake out of the way, the trilogy could push into a variety of exciting new directions. Or, at very least, the middle chapter would finally reveal more about the bigger picture. Instead, The Strangers: Chapter 2 only befuddles with a baffling misfire that lacks story and logic.
The Strangers: Chapter 2 picks up with Maya (Madelaine Petsch) hospitalized from her nearly lethal encounter with the masked Strangers and the news that her lover didn’t survive. She barely has time to grieve when the Strangers descend to snuff out their only survivor, igniting a night of survival as Maya constantly seeks to evade their murderous clutches while realizing trust is in even shorter supply in Venus, Oregon.
Director Renny Harlin, continuing to chip away at the 289-page screenplay by Alan R. Cohen & Alan Freedland, frames the middle chapter as one endless chase movie. From nearly the moment Maya wakes in her hospital bed to the film’s closing moments, she’s on the lam, hurdling herself through asinine scenarios and action set pieces like an action hero the trilogy hasn’t properly set her up to be.
To her credit, Petsch fully commits to the role’s physical demands. Maya’s astute observational skills and resilience are also winsome, though the film constantly works against her. Chapter 2 mildly teases the interiority of the Strangers, to baffling effect, but mostly it seems content to coast by on a series of stalk-and-prey chases that grow increasingly more outlandish and nonsensical. This is a middle chapter that refuses to engage with its concept in any meaningful way, but instead fills its empty runtime with rough CGI boar attacks. Yes, really.Â
It’s so barebones in its plotting that it leaves every wart and flaw gratingly exposed. It’s also sloppily executed, with Harlin all but refusing to ground this entry in reality in any way, let alone bother with basic continuity. That’d be fine if there were any semblance of pacing, suspense, or energy to liven up Maya’s repetitive middle act. It’s not just nonsensical, it’s sluggish.
We’re no closer to understanding the plan or purpose behind this trilogy experiment by film’s end, and that’s a massive problem. The first film delivered a paint-by-numbers playthrough of the 2008 original, and Chapter 2 spins its wheels in place, only briefly touching on the inevitable showdown teased in part one. Clunky opening text suggests a theme that this installment has no interest in exploring. It all exposes a severe lack of planning with this trilogy as a whole, as though the massive screenplay was divided into three equal parts instead of being arranged into three complete movies that stand on their own.
It makes the middle entry feel like a throwaway bottle episode that’s disregarded by even its creators. Petsch isn’t enough to drag this misfire through to its exhausting finish. Save for one or two inspired shots, Chapter 2 feels like Harlin has checked out already, deflating all momentum this trilogy might have had. A post-credit tease weakly sets the stage for the final chapter, a job that this installment was meant to achieve. But Chapter 2 throttles and chokes out any lingering interest in the Strangers and this confounding trilogy.
The Strangers: Chapter 2 screened at Fantastic Fest and releases in theaters on September 26, 2025.
