The Neon Demon (2016)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
An aspiring model's beauty in the Los Angeles fashion industry triggers intense envy and a descent into a surreal, violent nightmare.
The story
Following the unexplained deaths of her parents, 16-year-old aspiring model Jesse moves from a small town in Georgia to Los Angeles. She enters the high-pressure world of fashion, meeting a photographer named Dean and a group of older models. While her beauty captivates the industry, it also fuels the intense envy of those around her. As Jesse navigates the demands of professional shoots and the complexities of the local scene, she finds herself caught in a web of escalating tension and obsession within the glamorous but dangerous Los Angeles fashion circuit.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After moving to Los Angeles, 16-year-old Jesse becomes a sensation in the modeling world. She works with photographer Dean and meets models Gigi and Sarah. Her natural beauty causes jealousy, particularly in Sarah. After a tense encounter at a casting call, Sarah's envy turns physical. Jesse later experiences a series of unsettling events, including a terrifying encounter at her motel and a disturbing interaction with Ruby, a cosmetologist. The tension culminates in a violent confrontation where Ruby, Gigi, and Sarah attack Jesse in a pool, ultimately leading to her death. The film concludes with a surreal sequence where Sarah, suffering from a physical and psychological break, is seen in a state of distress, and a final shot shows a woman in the Mojave Desert.
- First release year
- 2016
- Runtime (minutes)
- 117
- Production countries
- France; Denmark; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Nicolas Winding Refn
- Writers
- Mary Laws · screenplay; Nicolas Winding Refn · screenplay; Polly Stenham · screenplay; Nicolas Winding Refn · story
- Cast and characters
- Elle Fanning · aspiring model; Karl Glusman; Jena Malone; Bella Heathcote; Abbey Lee; Desmond Harrington; Christina Hendricks; Keanu Reeves
- Genres
- arthouse horror; horror thriller
- Themes
- beauty; envy; obsession
- Tone and mood
- seductively stylish; brutal; surreal
- Premise and plot tags
- fashion industry; body horror; cannibalism; necrophilia
- Source material / true-story basis
- Elizabeth Báthory
- Content notes
- graphic content
- Reception
- The film received a polarized response from critics, praised for its style and cinematography but criticized for its script and graphic content.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 59% · scale: percentage · review count: 263; Rotten Tomatoes · score: 6.1 · scale: 10; Metacritic · score: 51 · scale: 100 · review count: 45
- Awards and nominations
- Best Composer · Cannes Film Festival · win
- Production trivia
- The script was inspired by the historical figure Elizabeth Báthory.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…