The Testament of Ann Lee

The Testament of Ann Lee — Release Date: 25 December 2025 (US) | 20 February 2026 (UK).
Directed by Mona Fastvold and co-written with Brady Corbet, starring Amanda Seyfried, Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, Stacy Martin, Tim Blake Nelson, and Christopher Abbott. Produced for Searchlight Pictures, the film is a historical musical drama centred on the life of Ann Lee, the 18th-century spiritual leader who founded the Shakers religious movement.

Set across England and colonial America, the film traces Ann Lee’s emergence from obscurity into a figure of intense devotion and controversy. Shaped by personal loss and rigid social constraints, Ann articulates a belief system grounded in communal living, celibacy, spiritual equality between genders, and ecstatic religious expression. Her teachings attract a growing group of followers who view her as a divinely inspired leader, forming the foundations of what would become the Shaker movement.

As the community expands, it faces resistance and persecution from the societies around it. The film presents Ann Lee’s leadership as both nurturing and demanding, highlighting the tensions between spiritual idealism and lived reality. Her authority is tested by external hostility and internal strain, as the group attempts to sustain a shared vision of faith while navigating fear, exile, and moral scrutiny.

Mona Fastvold’s direction emphasises physical presence, ritual, and embodied spirituality. Shot on 35mm film, the visual language draws on natural light, restrained compositions, and period detail to evoke the emotional intensity of belief rather than historical pageantry. Musical expression plays a central role in the film’s structure, with composer Daniel Blumberg drawing from authentic Shaker hymns and incorporating original compositions that function as communal acts rather than conventional musical numbers.

Amanda Seyfried’s performance anchors the film’s emotional core, presenting Ann Lee as both resolute and vulnerable. The ensemble cast supports a narrative focused on collective experience rather than individual ascent, reinforcing the film’s interest in community, devotion, and sacrifice.

Premiering in competition at the Venice International Film Festival, The Testament of Ann Lee positions itself within contemporary historical cinema that blends biography, spirituality, and musical form. The film approaches faith not as doctrine, but as lived intensity, offering a portrait of belief forged through endurance, conviction, and radical imagination.