In 2006 Sydney, a group of adult friends watch a film by a famous horror director named Lucas Roe. The film hints at a menacing monster terrorizing the main character, Naomi. She is constantly touched by something invisible in various scenes. The film cuts off abruptly. One of the friends, Aaron, who works as a film archivist, reveals that he could not find a second reel. Researching further, they find Roe’s P.O. box address and send him a letter. They successfully schedule an interview with one of the actresses in the film, Alison, at her home in Hobart. Of the friend group, Mark and Brooke travel to interview her.   During the interview, Alison explains that Roe would encourage the cast to frighten Naomi, on and off-camera. When Naomi asked him about the climax, he refused to tell her, wanting to fully frighten her. Alison found it extremely cruel and warned Naomi so they could quit together. However, Naomi refused because of her ambition to become a movie star. Therefore, Alison left without knowing what happened after.

Roe soon emails the friends in response to their letter, asking them to visit him in L.A. When Mark and Brooke arrive at Roe’s mansion, they notice his glass eye, a large scar near his ear, and a crucifix around his neck. His wife Danielle says that Roe's sinful career is over. They watch the second unedited half of the film that blurred the lines between fiction and reality through “Naomi’s gradual disintegration” as the male cast intimidates her. In the footage, Roe announces his plan to film the climax the following day. The other actors tell Naomi it will give her a heart attack, or worse. Roe threatens Naomi that she won’t become a star if she ruins the climax scene, so she accepts her forced oblivion.   In the next scene, the actors call Naomi unstable after she says something is after her. Fingers emerge from behind her head, but the other characters deny seeing anything. Then, Naomi is pulled down forcefully, emerging with a knife in her hand after stabbing Lucas Roe, who was crouching behind her chair. Roe yells to keep filming as an actor tackles Naomi, who begins to stab him in a frenzy. After they finish watching the footage, Roe says that no one died, but Naomi placed herself in a mental institution. He blames her for ruining his masterpiece.   Back home, Mark feels unsatisfied and goes to speak to Naomi, who has no recollection of her experience in film acting and shows blank, emotionless expressions. Naomi asks what is on Mark’s shoulder, but there is nothing there. When Mark leaves to go home, he feels a lingering sensation on his neck. On his train ride home, he is desperate to look at his back. He begins to feel sharp and prickly sensations, then wonders why he can’t get off the train.