A new Netflix drama has stormed to the top of the charts, despite some viewers branding it the “worst film ever”. Bad Influence, a Spanish-language romance thriller, has racked up more than 33 million views since its release earlier this month. The film, originally titled Mala Influencia, has become the platform’s most-watched non-English title, racing ahead of its nearest rival by nearly eight million views, Metro reported.
But while its popularity is clear, many viewers have slammed the film’s quality, with some even switching it off after just 20 minutes. The story follows Eros, an ex-con hired to protect a wealthy teenage ballerina named Reese from a stalker. As they spend more time together, their bond grows, despite strict warnings from Reese’s overprotective father Bruce not to let things get personal.
Set in an affluent suburb of Spain and filmed in Madrid, the 1 hour 46 minute film stars Alberto Olmo as Eros, Eléa Rochera as Reese, and Enrique Arce as Bruce.
It was directed by Chloé Wallace, and is based on a Wattpad novel of the same name by anonymous author teensspirit, also known as B A B E, which has been read more than 51 million times online.
Netflix describes the plot as “a young man with a dark past [who] gets a chance to start over when he’s hired to protect a wealthy teen, until their forbidden love gets in the way”.
But despite the impressive numbers, viewers on Rotten Tomatoes have left scathing reviews.
One wrote: “This is the worst movie I’ve ever watched! I can’t believe I’ve spent an hour and a half watching that thing. It has the worst storyline ever and it makes absolutely no sense, not to mention the horrible ending! Don’t waste your time on that.”
Another said: “Unfortunately, this was truly the worst film I’ve seen in years. And I can honestly say that after the first 20 minutes, I’d already seen enough and switched off.
“The poorly written plot couldn’t start quickly enough. The script and dialogue could have been written by teenagers after reading the first Colleen Hoover book, without discrediting her work. It is just packed with clichés.”
A third person added: “This is the worst movie I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t even make sense! It’s just plain, boring and stupid. It’s like they recreated the most emotional moments of many movies and put it all together, invented a story around it and finished.
“It really isn’t worth watching unless you want to watch a movie that’s so bad you can laugh about how bad it is.”
However, not everyone agreed.
One more positive review called it “a surprisingly cute romance for a movie based on a fanfiction story”, adding: “Director Chloé Wallace’s Spanish romance drama Bad Influence (2025) on Netflix is pretty sweet to me.
“It certainly is a generic story from someone’s Wattpad fanfic. However, it works as a solid setup for an earnest teen romance. Wallace’s direction has some nice lighting, cool camera turns, neon atmosphere, and steamy sexual tension.”
Another simply said: “Good films make people happy. As a young woman, this film makes my day!”