Skip to main content
  • TotalFilm
  • Edge
  • Newsarama
  • Retrogamer
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Trending
  • Best Netflix Movies
  • Movie Release Dates
  • Best movies on Disney Plus
  • Best Netflix Shows
Don't miss these
Barry Keoghan as Duke Shelby walking in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man
Crime Movies Netflix's new Peaky Blinders movie debuts to rave reviews and a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score
Cillian Murphy as Tommy in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.
Movies The 25 best movies on Netflix to watch right now
Jessie Buckley in The Bride
Horror Movies The Bride first reactions say Jessie Buckley's new Frankenstein movie is "what Joker 2 desperately wished it was"
Ghostface in Scream 7
Horror Movies Scream 7 review: "Never as sharp as the series' best, but still has a few neat tricks up its billowing sleeve"
Courteney Cox as Gale Weathers in Scream 7
Horror Movies Despite mixed reviews and a poor Rotten Tomatoes score, Scream 7 opens to franchise best $97.2 million worldwide
Billie Roy in Lee Cronin's The Mummy
Horror Movies Upcoming horror movies coming in 2026 and beyond
Shorty (Marlon Wayans) streaming in Scary Movie 6
Comedy Movies Scary Movie 6 may skewer Gen Z and play the hits, but it's not nostalgia bait
Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
Horror Movies 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple review: "The wildest and weirdest entry into the franchise yet"
Return to Silent Hill protagonist James Sunderland
Horror Movies Return to Silent Hill review: "Neither an impressive adaptation nor coherent enough to act as a standalone film"
Oona Chaplin as Varang in Avatar: Fire and Ash
Sci-Fi Movies Avatar: Fire and Ash review: "Still a technical marvel, with some of the year's best action filmmaking"
Jessie Buckley as Ida/Penny in The Bride
Horror Movies The Bride bombs at the box office with $13.6 million opening against a $90 million budget
Jessie Buckley as Ida/Penny in The Bride
Horror Movies The Bride earns mixed first reviews, as critics call it everything from "a modern classic" to "unholy mess"
Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott in Scream 7
Horror Movies Scream 7 takes franchise over $1 billion, joining the likes of The Conjuring, Alien, and Resident Evil
Nina Kiri as Evy in Undertone
Horror Movies Undertone releases another creepy teaser, and it looks like there's more to the upcoming horror movie than we thought
Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles in Sonic 3
Amazon Prime Video The 25 best movies on Prime Video to watch right now
  1. Entertainment
  2. Movies
  3. Horror Movies
  4. Sting

New horror movie about killer spiders debuts to strong Rotten Tomatoes score, earning comparisons to Alien and Slither

News
By Megan Garside published 15 April 2024

Who doesn't love a giant arachnid?

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Sting
(Image credit: Studio Canal)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Horror’s latest spider-themed movie has landed and it’s getting rave reviews, with fans calling it a must-watch for lovers of creature features. 

Sting, which premiered in US theatres on April 12, has debuted to a rather impressive 70% on Rotten Tomatoes. Although some critics are calling it a run-of-the-mill spidey slasher, others say it has earned its place in the beloved horror sub-genre, as Meagan Navarro from Bloody Disgusting writes: "Thanks to [Alyla] Browne’s bold performance and an emphasis on practical creature effects, Sting works as an entertaining throwback creature feature."

Daniel Rester from Battle Royale With Cheese went as far as to liken the film to one of the best sci-fi movies ever: "Sting works best in its final thirty minutes when it starts to feel like Alien in an apartment building." Similarly, Aaron Peterson from The Hollywood Outsider compared it to James Gunn's 2006 movie Slither, writing, "It is a wild, gory, taut, and fun monster mash of a film and one of the strongest of its kind in years."

You may like
  • Joe Kerry as Travis 'Teacake' Meachum and Georgina Campbell as Naomi Williams in Cold Storage Stranger Things star's new zombie horror Cold Storage is a love letter to gooey, goofy sci-fi from the early 2000s
  • Ben the chimp making friends in the trailer for Primate Upcoming chimp-themed horror movie Primate debuts to positive first reactions, comparing it to Stephen King's Cujo
  • Dylan O'Brien in Send Help Gory comedy thriller Send Help just bagged Sam Raimi his highest Rotten Tomatoes score since Spider-Man 2

However, for some critics, the film just didn't hit the mark, getting caught in a web of cliches so to speak, as Dais Johnston from Inverse said: "It’s a paint-by-numbers creature feature, but it goes over the lines in a distracting way." Simon Abrams from RogerEbert echoed, "The makers of Sting have obviously seen a lot of genre movies, but that cinephilia doesn’t translate."

Nevertheless, even though Sting probably isn't this generation's Arachnophobia, that doesn't make it any less of a horror movie, as Luke Y. Thompson from ComingSoon put it plainly: "Sting may be as predictable as any slasher movie, but delivers enough of the spider-goods to satisfy."

Directed by Kiah Roache-Turner, the arachnophobia-inducing movie follows a 12-year-old girl who has secretly been raising an unnervingly talented spider, only to discover that her once-loved pet is rapidly transforming into a giant flesh-eating monster. In an Evil Dead Rise-type situation, she and her family must fight for their survival in the apartment block against the eight-legged freak.

The cast includes Ryan Corr, Alyla Browne, Penelope Mitchell, Robyn Nevin, Noni Hazelhurst, Silvia Colloca, Danny Kim, and Jermaine Fowler. 

Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Sting is out in theatres in the US right now, and hits cinemas on May 31 in the UK. For more, check out our list of the best horror movies, or keep up to date with upcoming horror movies healing your way in 2024 and beyond. 

Megan Garside
Megan Garside
Social Links Navigation
Junior Social Media Editor, GamesRadar+

I'm the Junior Social Media Editor here at GamesRadar+, handling all of Total Film's social platforms. However, I also write, covering all things film and TV for the site's entertainment section. I joined GamesRadar+ in 2023 and have been here ever since. I previously worked in communications after graduating with an MA in journalism. In my spare time, you can find me binging horror movies or getting lost in a cosy little game on my Switch.

Read more
Joe Kerry as Travis 'Teacake' Meachum and Georgina Campbell as Naomi Williams in Cold Storage
Stranger Things star's new zombie horror Cold Storage is a love letter to gooey, goofy sci-fi from the early 2000s
 
 
Ben the chimp making friends in the trailer for Primate
Upcoming chimp-themed horror movie Primate debuts to positive first reactions, comparing it to Stephen King's Cujo
 
 
Dylan O'Brien in Send Help
Gory comedy thriller Send Help just bagged Sam Raimi his highest Rotten Tomatoes score since Spider-Man 2
 
 
Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple debuts to near perfect Rotten Tomatoes score
 
 
Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple review: "The wildest and weirdest entry into the franchise yet"
 
 
Ghostface in Scream 7
Scream 7 review: "Never as sharp as the series' best, but still has a few neat tricks up its billowing sleeve"
 
 
Latest in Horror Movies
Jessie Buckley as Ida/Penny in The Bride
The Bride bombs at the box office with $13.6 million opening against a $90 million budget
 
 
Midnight Mass (2021)
Mike Flanagan's Exorcist movie adds 11 familiar faces from the Flana-verse
 
 
Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Requiem Leon actor says he's "cautiously optimistic" about upcoming film adaptation from Weapons director
 
 
Nina Kiri as Evy in Undertone
Undertone releases another creepy teaser, and it looks like there's more to the upcoming horror movie than we thought
 
 
Jessie Buckley as Ida/Penny in The Bride
The Bride earns mixed first reviews, as critics call it everything from "a modern classic" to "unholy mess"
 
 
M3GAN post dog attack in M3GAN 2023
After being pulled from the release schedule, M3GAN spin-off SOULM8TE sparks back to life with an R-rating by the MPAA
 
 
Latest in News
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Gustave faces a gommage
Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force
 
 
A close-up of Grace talking with someone through glass in Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Requiem leads let actors re-do "technically" perfect scenes if it made them happy, says Grace actor
 
 
Kratos approaches Aphrodite's bedchamber in God of War 3
"The God of War sex mini-games were designed by women," which is why Aphrodite's bed looks "like a labia"
 
 
Alan Ritchson in Reacher season 3
Reacher star Alan Ritchson says season 4 is coming this year: "It's by far the best season we've had yet"
 
 
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Spider-Noir is the "same character, different version": "It's not a continuation of Into The Spider-Verse"
 
 
Helldivers 2
Helldivers 2 support agent says "there's no balance team" at Arrowhead because "it's all a team effort"
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Mario riding Yoshi through space with Luigi and Peach flying along beside him
    1
    The Super Mario Galaxy Movie reveals Donald Glover as the voice of Yoshi and more new casting in a star-spanning trailer that sends the entire Mushroom Kingdom to another planet
  2. 2
    Reacher star Alan Ritchson says season 4 is coming this year: "It's by far the best season we've had yet"
  3. 3
    Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force: "Because it was a JRPG, we tried to find a mix"
  4. 4
    "The God of War sex mini-games were designed by women," former Sony Santa Monica writer says, which is why Aphrodite's bed looks "like a labia"
  5. 5
    Resident Evil Requiem leads let actors re-do "technically" perfect scenes if it made them happy, says Grace actor: "'If you didn't feel it, we need to do it again'"

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...