Shudder Acquires Horror Movie Jakob's Wife Ahead of SXSW Premiere

The South by Southwest Film Festival is known to deliver audiences some of the most unsettling and groundbreaking genre films from around the world, with excitement around Travis Stevens' sophomore directorial effort Jakob's Wife being acquired by Shudder and RLJE Films ahead of its premiere at the virtual edition of the festival. Following its premiere, the film will get an On Demand and theatrical release, while it is slated to debut exclusively on the streaming service Shudder later this year. The virtual edition of South by Southwest is set to kick off on March 16th and Jakob's Wife is slated to hit theaters and On Demand on April 16th.

Per press release, "RLJE Films, a business unit of AMC Networks, and Shudder, AMC Networks' premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural, have acquired the North American rights to the horror film, Jakob's Wife, ahead of its world premiere at this year's SXSW Film Festival. RLJE Films plans to release the film in theaters and on Demand on April 16th and Shudder will premiere the film on its platform later in the year. Shudder has also acquired UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand rights."

Directed by Travis Stevens (Girl on the Third Floor), he co-wrote the film with Mark Steensland (The Special) and Kathy Charles (Castle Freak). Jakob's Wife stars Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator, You're Next), Larry Fessenden (Habit, Stake Land), Nyisha Bell (Coming 2 America), Mark Kelly (The Hot Zone), Sarah Lind (Wolfcop), Robert Rusler (A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, Vamp), Bonnie Aarons (The Nun, The Conjuring 2), and Phil Brooks (aka CM Punk, Girl on the Third Floor).

"We're thrilled to acquire Jakob's Wife ahead of its world premiere at SXSW," said Mark Ward, Chief Acquisitions Officer at RLJE Films. "This film has already garnered tremendous following during production, and we're confident Jakob's Wife will be well received at the festival."

In Jakob's Wife, Anne is married to a small-town minister and feels like her life and marriage have been shrinking over the past 30 years. After a chance encounter with "The Master," she discovers a new sense of power and an appetite to live bigger and bolder than before. As Anne is increasingly torn between her enticing new existence and her life before, the body count grows and Jakob realizes he will have to fight for the wife he took for granted.

Jakob's Wife is an AMP production, produced by Bob Portal (It Came From The Desert), Inderpal Singh (The Hoarder), Barbara Crampton (Beyond The Gates), and Stevens. Ward and Jess De Leo from RLJE Films and Emily Gotto from Shudder negotiated the deal with James Norrie and Nina Kolokouri of AMP International on behalf of the filmmakers.

Jakob's Wife is slated to hit theaters and On Demand on April 16th.

Are you looking forward to the new film? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars.