Amanda Seyfried is reflecting deeply on the world around her, and her latest role only intensifies those feelings.
while promoting Ann Lee's willThe actress admitted that she has been fighting with the state of the United States.
Seyfried said talking so much about Ann Lee, the 18th-century founder of the Shakers whom she plays in the film, has pushed her to think about what community really means today.
“What if we don't have any kind of agenda? What if our agenda is to take care of each other?” he said, calling socialism “a wonderful idea” in the sense of shared care, even if he knows the term can be misinterpreted.
For her, the concept is simple: “If I have more money, I can spend more money on other people.”
In Mona Fastvold's drama, Seyfried takes on the role of a woman who endured a devastating loss, four children, and transformed her grief into a movement focused on equality and community living.
The film combines trauma, faith, healing and, unexpectedly, humor.
Before a screening at the SCAD Film Festival, he even encouraged the audience to embrace his unconventional tone, telling them, “I give you permission to laugh.”
But the connection he establishes between Ann Lee's world and the present is what weighs the most on him.
Seyfried remembers how, after 9/11, people came together in a way that seemed instinctive and selfless.
“Everyone left everything for each other,” he said, noting how distant that collective spirit now feels.
“We shouldn't have to suffer a meteorite or a burning house to leave everything for each other.”
His reflections became a broader statement, based on the idea that people are more similar than they admit.
“We all want to be seen, we all want to be loved, we all want to be desired,” he said, noting that both sides of any divide share the same basic desires.
That's why she questions what anyone gains from greed, ego, or defensiveness, emotions she believes separate people rather than bring them together.
Seyfried's performance in Ann Lee's will She's already being praised, but it's clear that the experience is shaping her in ways that go beyond the screen.
Through the story of a woman who built a community out of loss, Seyfried holds up a mirror to the present, urging something simple: take care of each other again.
