The Testament of Ann Lee ending explained: What happens after Ann Lee's death?

The Testament of Ann Lee is a 2025 historical musical drama directed by Mona Fastvold and co-written with Brady Corbet.

After Ann Lee's death in 1784 at age 48, the movie does not show her burial or immediate aftermath. Instead the film ends by focusing on the surviving Shaker community.

They carry on with daily tasks, shared labor, prayer gatherings, and ecstatic worship sessions filled with singing, shaking and choreographed dance, all based on the principles which Ann established.

This choice highlights that her true legacy is the ongoing life of the group. The Shakers persist without her physical presence, proving her ideas can endure. 

Historically the movement expanded after her death, reaching a peak of around 6,000 members in the 19th century before declining due to the celibacy rule.

The Testament of Ann Lee stars Amanda Seyfried as Ann Lee, the real founder of the Shaker movement. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in September 2025 and opened in limited U.S. theatres on December 25, 2025 via Searchlight Pictures.

Key cast includes Lewis Pullman as Ann's brother William, Christopher Abbott as her husband Abraham Standerin, Thomasin McKenzie in a supporting role among followers and Stacy Martin as early sect leader Jane Wardley.

The story covers Ann's life in chapters- her poor childhood in Manchester, England, exposure to her parents' intimacy causing lifelong aversion to sex, forced marriage, four pregnancies ending in infant deaths.

Joining the Wardleys' shaking Quaker group, she has visions leading to celibacy commitment, persecution in England, 1774 voyage to America, settlement in New York, building communal villages with gender equality, pacifism, shared property and worship through hymns and movement.

Musical elements feature reimagined traditional Shaker hymns with modern choreography, showing the group's ecstatic practices.

The Testament of Ann Lee ending explained: Ann's death and the Shakers' future

The film is structured in chapters tracing Ann Lee's life from birth to death. Towards the end as the community settles in America, tensions arise over the strict celibacy rule.

A young couple among the followers begins a secret sexual relationship, breaking the central vow that sex separates people from God. Ann discovers this through community reports or direct observation.

She confronts the pair calmly. There is no anger or harsh punishment shown. Ann explains that full commitment to the rules including complete abstinence, is required to stay in the community. The couple must leave if they cannot follow this.

The expulsion is presented as necessary for consistency. It protects the group's shared principles rather than targeting the individuals. This scene shows the practical challenges of enforcing celibacy- no new children means reliance on converts for growth and the human conflicts it creates.

Ann's decision ties back to her personal trauma: the deaths of her four children which she interpreted as punishment for sexual acts. Her visions reinforced that celibacy brings closeness to God.

The young couple accepts the outcome and departs the settlement together. This moment underscores internal strains but also Ann's firm leadership in maintaining the utopian vision.

The final chapters depict Ann's decline. Years of travel, preaching missions, physical hardships, arrests, and assaults, especially during the Revolutionary War, due to Shaker pacifism, take a toll.

She becomes weaker, experiences mental confusion, and grieves losses like her brother William's death.

The film avoids a dramatic deathbed scene. Ann passes away in 1784 but the focus quickly moves away from her individual story.

Closing sequences show the remaining Shakers continuing routine life: farming, crafting, communal meals, organized labor where men and women work equally, and worship services. 

These include group singing of hymns, shaking to release sin, and elaborate dance movements reimagined in the film's musical style.

The community functions smoothly under the established guidelines of equality, simplicity, pacifism and celibacy. Followers revere Ann as "Mother Ann," seeing her as the female form of Christ's spirit.

By shifting to this group portrait, the ending argues that Ann's testament is the living community she built. Her ideas outlive her body.

Historically, this matches reality: the Shakers grew most after her death, establishing multiple villages and influencing American design and communal living though the no-procreation rule led to eventual near-extinction.

The film leaves viewers with the Shakers' enduring practices, blending ecstasy in worship with disciplined daily life.

Where to watch The Testament of Ann Lee

The Testament of Ann Lee has had a limited theatrical release in the U.S, distributed by Searchlight Pictures. Select screenings are in 70mm format. 

No streaming or digital release has been announced yet. Check Fandango, AMC Theatres, or local listings for showtimes.

Stay tuned for more such updates!