Australian director Nick Kozakis's action-horror film "Kick On" is set to have its world premiere in the Midnight Madness section of the Toronto International Film Festival. Kozakis has described his aim for the film as capturing the feel of "John Wick" on methamphetamine, prioritising practical stunts and prosthetics over digital effects to make the violence feel authentic, while also keeping close focus on his young cast's emotional reactions rather than letting style overwhelm character.

The film follows four friends whose night of partying turns into a fight for survival after they become trapped in the home of a dangerous mobster's son, encountering escalating violence, paranoia and betrayal. It stars Markella Kavenagh ("The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power") as Eden and Nikolai Nikolaeff as Ray, with prosthetics work from designer Larry Van Duynhoven, whose credits include "Furiosa" and "Mortal Kombat". Kozakis said the story's emotional core lies in themes of chance and inherited trauma, particularly through Eden's grief over her younger sister and Ray's troubled relationship with an overbearing father, and that he wanted the characters to feel human rather than mere "lambs to the slaughter".