Apparition has acquired all North American rights to The Square, the first feature film from Australian stuntman-turned-director Nash Edgerton.

Apparition CEO Bob Berney has set an April 9 release and will screen Edgerton’s short film Spider prior to each theatrical presentation of The Square in what he called “a perfect noir cocktail.”

The Square tells of an adulterous couple whose scheming leads to arson, blackmail and murder. Louise Smith produced and Joel Edgerton, who co-wrote the screenplay with Matthew Dabner, stars alongside David Roberts, Claire Van Der Bloom and Anthony Hayes.

The Square is a Screen Australia in association with the Screen New South Wales presentation of a Film Depot production in association with Blue-Tongue Films.

Pathe International is handling foreign sales and Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group will handle all domestic ancillary rights per its output deal with Apparition.

“It was the short film, Spider that interested me in Nash,” Berney said. “Popular at festivals all over the world, it signals the mood for the appropriately shocking and wickedly humorous follow up feature, The Square.”

Nash Edgerton has more than 100 feature credits as a stuntman, among them The Matrix trilogy, Superman Returns, and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge Of The Sith.