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| On the red carpet before the premiere of her new film, Amanda Seyfried wears a gauzy, bejewelled gown. Photograph (above) and cover picture by Jay Zoo for DAM Amanda Seyfried presented her latest feature, The Testament of Ann Lee, at the 76th Berlin International Film Festival. The historical narrative examines the life and leadership of the Shaker founder, tracing the rise of a religious movement built on communal living and gender equality. Blending rigorous period detail with reinterpreted Shaker hymns, the film puts the American actor at the centre of an ambitious portrait of belief, power and social reform. Story by Jeanne-Marie Cilento. Photography by Jay Zoo |
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Film director Mona Fastvold with Amanda Seyfried at their photocall in Berlin. |
The American and British co-production does not approach its subject as distant heritage. Instead, Fastvold frames Ann Lee as a destabilising force, a leader whose spiritual authority challenged entrenched hierarchies and whose vision of collective living demanded sacrifice.
Music is central to the storytelling, with traditional Shaker hymns reinterpreted and staged with striking physicality. The result is immersive rather than reverential, driven by rhythm and bodies in motion. Seyfried’s performance anchors the film with a focused commitment. She sheds any trace of romanticism, portraying Lee as fervent, exacting and often isolated by the magnitude of her belief.
Amanda Seyfried's performance is built on control: vocal, physical and emotional, and marks a decisive step further into complex dramatic territory
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Producer Andrew Morrison with Amanda Seyfried, Mona Fastvold & David Blumberg at the Berlinale. |
That dialogue between restraint and assertion even carried into her festival appearances. For the evening premiere, Seyfried pivoted toward high glamour.
A sheer, sequined gown shimmered under flashbulbs, styled with Tiffany gold and diamond jewellery that underscored the scale of the occasion. Longtime stylist Elizabeth Stewart crafted a look that felt celebratory without excess, allowing texture and light to carry the statement rather than volume.
For the Grand Hyatt photocall, Seyfried chose head-to-toe Miu Miu, demonstrating a sharp understanding of narrative dressing, a black Spring 2026 dress. Sleeveless and cut to a knee-length A-line, it balanced delicacy with edge through intricate lacework and deliberate cutouts that revealed flashes of pale blue beneath.
Music is central to the storytelling, with traditional Shaker hymns reinterpreted and staged with striking physicality
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Amanda Seyfried wore head-to-toe Miu Miu in a crocheted black A-line dress plus the Italian label's signature slingbacks. |
Ruffled shoulders softened the line, but the transparency ensured the look never tipped into nostalgia. It was modern and slightly provocative, a contemporary counterpoint to the disciplined world depicted on screen. On her feet: the house’s patent leather buckle slingbacks, a pointed silhouette sharpened by triple straps and polished metal hardware.
During the Berlin press conference, Seyfried spoke candidly about seeking projects that challenge her craft and justify time away from family life. She described The Testament of Ann Lee as demanding but creatively expansive, a production driven by clear vision and collaborative trust.
Released within days of her commercial thriller The Housemaid, the film highlights her range, one a box-office hit, the other a formally ambitious meditation on belief and leadership. In Berlin, Seyfried said she wanted to explore conviction, authority and the cost of ideological purity.
Scroll down to see highlights from the red-carpet premiere of the film at the Berlinale
