The Man Who Tickles (2026): Cast, Story and Release Details

Prepared by Movies Dock Editorial

The Man Who Tickles is a 2026 Australian mystery thriller about a hard-boiled detective and his inexperienced assistant investigating a citywide series of tickling crimes. Written and directed by Matthew Shelley, the 10-minute film features Hamish McAllister, Rowan Gadhia and Sean Stolyarov in key roles.

The Man Who Tickles is a short Australian mystery thriller built around an unusual criminal case. Its premise follows a serial tickler whose attacks send a detective and his rookie assistant into an investigation to uncover the truth.

Written and directed by Matthew Shelley, the film has a 10-minute runtime and is presented in English. The cast includes Hamish McAllister as Detective Sal Monella and Rowan Gadhia as Trip Hazardson.

The Man Who Tickles movie details

Story without spoilers

A serial tickler is terrorising the city, creating a strange but serious case for hard-boiled police detective Sal Monella. Working with his bumbling rookie assistant, Trip Hazardson, Monella must determine what is really happening and bring the crimes to an end.

The supplied synopsis establishes a mystery-crime setup with a deliberately comic edge, while the tagline, “This is no laughing matter,” contrasts the absurd nature of the case with the investigators’ need to treat it seriously. No further plot details are provided, so the film’s solution remains best approached without speculation.

What to expect

The Man Who Tickles combines mystery, thriller and crime elements in a compact 10-minute format. The central setup places an experienced detective and an inept newcomer against an unusual serial offender, suggesting a story that balances investigation with comic character dynamics.

The film’s short runtime indicates a tightly contained presentation rather than an expansive crime narrative. Its premise and tagline point to an offbeat tone, but the available information does not establish specific scenes, twists or stylistic choices.

Cast and creative team

Matthew Shelley serves as both director and writer. Hamish McAllister plays Detective Sal Monella, while Rowan Gadhia portrays Trip Hazardson. Sean Stolyarov appears as The Commissioner, Ted Harrison plays Hans Wriggle, and Michael Sae-Teo is credited as The Tickler of '78. Benji Thurlow is also part of the cast, though no character name is supplied.

• Hamish McAllister as Detective Sal Monella
• Rowan Gadhia as Trip Hazardson
• Sean Stolyarov as The Commissioner
• Ted Harrison as Hans Wriggle
• Michael Sae-Teo as The Tickler of '78
• Benji Thurlow

Release and production context

The Man Who Tickles is listed as a 2026 release, with a release date of October 8, 2026. It has a runtime of 10 minutes and is classified as a mystery, thriller and crime film. The production is from Australia, the spoken language is English, and MaSh Studios is credited as the production company. The title is listed as The Man Who Tickles in English.

Production companies: MaSh Studios

Movies Dock view

With its compact running time and unusual detective premise, The Man Who Tickles presents a focused crime mystery shaped by an intentionally playful central idea. The available details position it as a brief Australian genre film led by a detective-and-rookie partnership, without revealing how the case is resolved.

Film data:
TMDB