Amanda Seyfried had a busy end to 2025, with musical drama “The Testament of Ann Lee” and erotic thriller “The Housemaid” releasing within days of each other. Though the films are “vastly different,” the star is proud that they have one thing in common: centering strong women.
At a Berlin Film Festival press conference for “The Testament of Ann Lee” on Thursday before the film’s Special Gala screening, Seyfried was asked about what attracts her to a project and the experience of starring in both films at the same time. Though Seyfried was not questioned point-blank about politics as many stars have been at this edition of the Berlinale, the reporter ended their question by asking Seyfried about the importance of quality in “these times when fascism is rising everywhere.”
“I think about, what’s worth leaving my kids for? And what’s going to give me the opportunity as an artist to flex myself and to learn something about myself?” Seyfried said. “I mean, this particular project [‘Ann Lee’] had quality all over it, and what I define as quality is a clear vision, and not necessarily a message but an exploration of someone’s life through storytelling in a cinematic atmosphere with a real edge.”
Seyfried continued that though Paul Feig’s “The Housemaid” — which co-stars Sydney Sweeney and has become a box office hit — is “vastly different” in content and the experience of filming, it was “also incredibly fun and let me flex myself and my artistic needs.”
“Not in the same way necessarily, but it was very fruitful for me personally,” she said. “And at the end of the day, I think both — I’m gonna say this — I love the fact that they’re both about strength of character, women with needs and who are activated by those needs and by the need for equality and safety in the world.”
Seyfried concluded that she’s “100% behind both movies” and is “thrilled that they came out around the same time.”
“Not just because they were so dynamic for me as an actor but because they do say something,” she said. “It’s just a different kind of genre with a different kind of appeal to different kinds of people. But women are showing up at the theater because we’re making movies for women.”
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“The Testament of Ann Lee” team, including Seyfried, director and writer Mona Fastvold, composer Daniel Blumberg and producer Andrew Morrison were on hand at the Berlin press conference. The movie first premiered in competition at Venice Film Festival in September and released theatrically in the U.S. on Dec. 25 and the U.K. on Feb. 20.
The historical drama stars Seyfried as Ann Lee, the “founder of the Shaker religious community who preached gender equality and social justice and was revered by her followers,” according to its offiical synopsis. “The film captures the ecstasy and anguish of her quest for utopia and presents more than a dozen historic Shaker hymns, reinterpreted and choreographed with impressive intensity.” Alongside Seyfried, “The Testament of Ann Lee” stars Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, Stacy Martin, Tim Blake Nelson and Christopher Abbott.
Though “The Testament of Ann Lee” missed out on any Oscar nominations, Seyfried was nominated for best actress in a musical or comedy at the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards. The film received largely positive reviews, with Variety‘s Guy Lodge writing: “It has an earnest, full-hearted sweep, in large part thanks to a performance of redoubtable commitment and nerve-deep feeling by Amanda Seyfried — far from the musical terrain of either ‘Mamma Mia!’ or ‘Les Misérables,’ but fully in command of her gifts.”
From Variety US