KUALA LUMPUR, Sep 1 — Adam Wingard’s upcoming action-slasher Onslaught is generating early attention ahead of its theatrical release, with the film currently holding an 83 per cent Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

The film has been described as a violent, synth-driven action-horror production with grindhouse influences, drawing inspiration from the work of filmmaker John Carpenter and classic B-movies.

“Adam Wingard throws a collection of action and B-movie genre influences into a blender,” writes IGN, “pushes that concoction across the table, and encourages you to chug.”

“What we wind up with is a synth-draped, unabashedly violent, grindhouse-y grab bag of Carpenter-esque elements that makes this feel like the single greatest John Carpenter movie that John Carpenter never made,” according to Slashfilm.

Director Wingard has stated Onslaught is connected to his previous films of The Guest (2014) and You’re Next (2011).

The Guest, starring Dan Stevens as the mysterious and lethal former soldier David, introduced a story rooted in a secretive military programme.

That background is part of the wider continuity shared by the films of director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett.

The new film expands on that world, focusing on an organisation and a group of genetically engineered soldiers linked to a covert military operation.

Wingard returns to original genre filmmaking with Onslaught after spending much of the past several years working within Warner Bros.’ MonsterVerse.

He previously directed Godzilla vs. Kong and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. 

Onslaught stars Adria Arjona, Dan Stevens, Eric Wareheim, Reginald VelJohnson, Michael Biehn, Alex Pereira, Drew Starkey and Rebecca Hall.

The story centres on an army sniper who attempts to protect her young daughter after genetically engineered super-soldiers escape from a secret military facility.

Onslaught is scheduled to open in the United States on September 4, 2026, through A24.

In Malaysia, Antenna Entertainments will distribute the film.

The film also arrives during a period of continued international interest in A24 productions.

The independent entertainment company has distributed films that have gone on to receive major critical and awards recognition, including Moonlight (2016) and Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022), both of which won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

Recent A24 films that have gained attention and generated significant discussion globally and in Malaysia include  Backrooms, which grossed US$394.1 million (approximately RM1.59 billion) worldwide, and The Drama, which grossed US$132.4 million (approximately RM533.2 million).

With Onslaught, Wingard returns to the action and horror territory that characterised much of his earlier work, while continuing elements from the fictional world established in The Guest and You’re Next.