IFC Films has picked up the distribution rights for The Rule of Jenny Pen, a horror film from director James Ashcroft (Coming Home in the Dark) that stars John Lithgow (Dexter, Harry and the Hendersons) and Geoffrey Rush (Mystery Men) as two elderly residents of a nursing home.
Lithgow’s character, however, is far from a gentle soul; he sports a creepy baby doll on one hand and appears to enjoy setting residents on fire and maiming and murdering them in other ways. What a way to retire!
Here’s the official logline:
Confined to a secluded rest home and trapped within his stroke-ridden body, a former Judge (Rush) must stop an elderly psychopath (Lithgow) who employs a child’s puppet to abuse the home’s residents with deadly consequences.
The trailer IFC released today gives us a glimpse of Lithgow’s psychopath, who wields the baby puppet on his hand with malicious glee. It also boasts that Stephen King called it one of the best movies he saw in 2024, so odds are good that the film is thoroughly disturbing.
Ashcroft won Best Director at 2024’s Fantastic Fest for his work here, and he co-wrote the script with Eli Kent and Owen Marshall.
The Rule of Jenny Pen premieres in theaters on March 7, 2025.
Check out the trailer below.
