The Incomer Proves To Be A Welcome Visitor

Sundance Film Review: The Incomer
Director: Louis Paxton
Little Walnut Productions
Premiere: 01.22.2026

It seems that quirky little comedies set on islands in the UK and featuring a cast member from The Paper are one of my Sundance mainstays. In 2025, The Ballad of Wallis Island was a source of immeasurable joy, and in 2026 we have its decidedly offbeat cousin, The Incomer.

On a remote Scottish isle cut off from the modern world, siblings Isla (Gayle Rankin, House of Dragons) and Sandy (Grant O’Rourke, Outlander) have spent their entire lives alone, guided by folklore, ritual and one sacred rule: Never allow an outsider to stay. Their fragile equilibrium shatters when Daniel (Domhnall Gleeson, About Time, Peter Rabbit), a painfully awkward mainland bureaucrat, washes ashore with orders to remove them from the land. To Isla, he’s a threat; to Sandy, a curiosity; to both, a challenge to everything they believe. As Daniel struggles to survive island life, the siblings are slowly forced to confront the myths that have protected and imprisoned them. What begins as hostility turns into uneasy coexistence, then unexpected connection. 

What makes The Incomer work so beautifully is how confidently it commits to its strangeness while never losing sight of the humanity at its center. The film uses its remote island setting not just as a backdrop, but as an emotional pressure cooker, allowing loneliness, fear, and longing to slowly surface beneath the jokes. The sibling dynamic feels lived-in and real, while the outsider who disrupts their world is played with just the right mix of awkwardness, charm and quiet empathy. The humor lands because it comes from the characters, not shtick, and when the film softens into something more tender, it feels earned rather than sentimental. By the time it reaches its gentle, surprising conclusion, The Incomer has become less a comedy about oddballs and more a thoughtful, deeply felt fable about what it costs — and what it means — to finally let someone in.

The superb performances keep the zany premise grounded even when at its most outrageous. Rankin gives Isla a ferocity that’s hilarious until it’s sad, and then surprisingly moving, letting flashes of fear and protectiveness crack through the bluster without softening the character.  O’Rourke makes Sandy more than a comic foil, finding a fragile innocence that deepens the  emotional stakes. And as the hapless outsider, Gleeson leans into the discomfort, turning social awkwardness into a form of vulnerability that feels genuinely earned. What’s impressive is how naturally the trio play off one another, allowing hostility, curiosity and connection to evolve scene by scene. Even at its most heightened, the acting never winks at the audience, which is why the film’s humor lands — and why its moments of tenderness linger.

The Incomer makes for an entirely welcome visitor with a distinctly Scottish vibe, and there’s a reason why it emerged as a festival favorite and an award-winner. This zany little comedy is irresistible, and it’s destined to be a frequently quoted cult classic. —Patrick Gibbs

Read more of SLUG’s coverage of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.