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Act One

Play trailer Act One 2026 1h 44m Drama Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 13 Reviews Popcornmeter 0 Ratings
Hannah Packer, an innocent and sheltered seventeen-year-old, lives for the stage. But when she's not cast in her high school play, her dreams of becoming an actress seem impossible. Until she discovers Act One Studios. Melanie Saunders, the studio's magnetic founder, sees something special in Hannah. A former actress herself, Melanie promises to unlock Hannah's true potential. She welcomes Hannah into The Group, an elite collective of fiercely loyal actors preparing for a major showcase that Melanie promises will change their lives. There, Hannah meets Henry, a charming older student who becomes her scene partner -- and maybe something more. With opening night approaching, Melanie's training grows increasingly intense and her demands of The Group include giving up anyone and anything that stands in the way of her methods. As the line between performance and reality blurs, Hannah discovers how far she's willing to go and what she's willing to sacrifice to become the artist Melanie promised she could be.

Critics Reviews

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Ryan Lattanzio IndieWire Jun 15
B+
While the setup is more satisfying than the film‘s more conventionally genre-shaped payoff, Takal ends with a hell of a scene that turns the movie on its head. Hannah may have found her truth, but she’s lost herself in the process, quite literally. Go to Full Review Guy Lodge Variety Jun 15
Most people are not actors, or even aspiring actors, and Sophia Takal‘s eerily askew, drily funny “Act One” thrives on the hunger and anxiety and potential madness of those with an earnest desire to become someone else. Go to Full Review Carla Hay Culture Mix 4d
Act One is a unique psychological thriller about a lonely and gullible teenager and how she's lured into an actor seminar that is really a cult with a toxic and manipulative leader. This drama has many creepy moments and an unconventional ending. Go to Full Review Matthew Passantino Big Picture Big Sound Jun 26
2.5/4
"Act One" is all about the unnerving build-up, especially because the last act gets a bit too ludicrous for its own good. Go to Full Review Jason Adams Pajiba Jun 22
Much like its young heroine, Act One strides with great and unnerving self-confidence straight into its tale of power and exploitation and desire, all of it getting tangled up into confusing, hormone-fueled, and delicious little knots Go to Full Review Daniel Gorman In Review Online Jun 19
It’s fascinating to see an artist return to some of the same subject matter a decade later with an older, more nuanced perspective on the adventurous follies of youth. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Cast & Crew

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Sophia Takal

Director

Ella Beatty

Actor

Ari Graynor

Actor

Nate Mann

Actor

Elizabeth Reaser

Actor

Sinclair Daniel

Actor
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Act One

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Movie Info

Synopsis Hannah Packer, an innocent and sheltered seventeen-year-old, lives for the stage. But when she's not cast in her high school play, her dreams of becoming an actress seem impossible. Until she discovers Act One Studios. Melanie Saunders, the studio's magnetic founder, sees something special in Hannah. A former actress herself, Melanie promises to unlock Hannah's true potential. She welcomes Hannah into The Group, an elite collective of fiercely loyal actors preparing for a major showcase that Melanie promises will change their lives. There, Hannah meets Henry, a charming older student who becomes her scene partner -- and maybe something more. With opening night approaching, Melanie's training grows increasingly intense and her demands of The Group include giving up anyone and anything that stands in the way of her methods. As the line between performance and reality blurs, Hannah discovers how far she's willing to go and what she's willing to sacrifice to become the artist Melanie promised she could be.
Director
Sophia Takal
Producer
Allison Rose Carter, Stephanie Roush, Julie Waters, Julie Christeas, Jon Read, Sophia Takal
Screenwriter
Sophia Takal
Production Co
Foxglove Films
Genre
Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Runtime
1h 44m