INTERVIEW: ‘Testament’ Director Is Creating A Cultural Revolution With A Beautiful Retelling Of The Book Of Acts

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Exclusive Interview by Million Voices editor Kay Hill.

“Testament” is the new and already hit series from Angel Studios, offering a gritty, innovative retelling of the Book of Acts.

Million Voices spoke with the show’s creator-writer-director Paul Syrstad in June about the first two episodes, which bring the viewer into the depths of a world reeling from the resurrection of Christ … and let’s be honest, aren’t we all still somewhat reeling from this, the greatest gift our Father ever gave us?

Syrstad looks straight out of college when we hop on our video call; fresh faced and ready to share his passion and purpose in a way so many younger Christians are finding in our ever-growing Great Revival. Having been raised in the U.K. in a secular family, I was personally shocked when the trailer for “Testament” dropped. Since Christ found me a little over a decade ago, it’s been an uphill battle to reintroduce myself to a largely secular population. But clearly, something revolutionary is happening within the British Isles, and Syrstad has no idea he’s at the forefront of it — in the most humble and endearing way possible.

And, more than anything, I’m immediately aware of my own Biblical illiteracy (in the best, most inspiring way).

As a former(ish) Brit myself, I was very excited to see my countrymen engaged in His word, something I haven’t seen since the late 1990s; what has the response been from the general British public?

“One of my mentors Hugh Osgood prayed for the death of nominalism and I think that’s come to pass, so we may see it as there aren’t as many Christians, but it’s clearer now: everyone who has engaged in this show is really excited. Church screenings, and celebrating Christ’s word, and I feel something birthing something here. We’ve been blown away by the Church responses, blown away, and excited. We’re still pushing the rock up the hill in getting the overall Church to engage in a whole new way with our faith, and in my hope is good. Quite wonderful, actually.”

What made you guys choose Acts, given its one of the hardest books in the Bible? “The communicator in me wanted to bring a world to the audience they could place themselves in. I think that’s what people are most surprised at in watching the first few episodes: we are telling the story of the Book of Acts Chapter II onwards but in a way that all of us can relate to. Obviously it takes place over 20-30 years, so we have to fill in the gaps with what happened.

“It’s the story I’ve always wanted to go back to because we are living in the unwritten chapter. It ends on a cliff hanger, so its to ask people to imagine this now, and what does it mean to follow?” (RELATED: Angel Studios Greenlights Two Seasons Of Post-Apocalyptic Thriller ‘Homestead’)

“At the end of episode one, we have the healing story — I wrote, directed, edited that episode — but it took until last week for me to realize that if I saw someone on the side of the road with the same issues as Caleb, do I have the faith to stop and say, ‘in the name of Jesus, I command you walk,’ so I think this is a great challenge. Let’s get uncomfortable with this and who we are.”

Testament / Provided by Angel Studios

“We try and let the truth for itself. We don’t place a perspective on the scenes or on the characters. Ester casting Stephen out — she’s right from her point of view, and what she knows to be true. And it’s not until the end that we realize what these people are preaching about is true. Until then, it really does feel like a cult. Then suddenly, a lame man is healed in front of everyone, which changes everything.“

What was your favorite thing about this project? “Writing, especially one of the episodes we all worked on. It was so important that we actually all went abroad to do it. We ran, went on walks together, prayer walks, so that was an incredibly fond memory.” (RELATED: ‘Hollow Faith’: How Kelsey Grammer Found ‘Reawakening’ After Sister’s Murder)

Seeing the Apostles walk out of a flat in a London council estate was one of the most powerful images I’ve ever seen; I literally can’t stop thinking about it. Was the set choice purposeful or did it all miraculously come together (like so much of the show): “It was intentional but also extremely given. Most productions have a lot more time, and we miraculously got that set a week before. The world and production designer Alex, we talked about the District of Salem, a brutalist, all the architecture is very brutalist in order to feel the oppression of the Roman Imperium, but then also hints of this art deco, harkening back to what once was.”

Stephen a Witness-lowres / Provided by Angel Studios

“If the early church was happening today, what issues would they have to be dealing with, like addiction and human trafficking. These things are going on in our communities, and the early church was not an organized system, they were individuals carrying the holy spirit, empowered by him, seeing something and doing something.”

“What is the holy spirit whispering in my ear and how do I listen.”

“Luke writes the Book of Acts and Gospel of Luke, and he focuses his story on one particular storyline that happens that is mainly Peter and Saul, but there were hundreds of other stories going on at that time. Like, most of the Apostles don’t get mentioned in the Book of Acts, but all the stories are there to support the unfolding of the Book of Acts. So if there are stories that you don’t recognize from the Book of Acts, it follows through.” (RELATED: ‘Separation Of Church And State Is A Lie’: Legal Precedent Collapses Bringing Religious Freedom To US)

The show definitely has a gritty vibe, something edgy about the production that creates a sense of tension just from the visuals. Was this intentional or did it emerge through the course of filming? “We wanted it to feel as real as possible. We had a bit of a rule saying, we should be able to read this in either time period and not quite know where you sit. Obviously the architecture and technology are modern, but its intended to be as deep and real as possible. It was all very intentional. And we always check each other’s writing, even down to the colloquialisms. We’re all actors too, so we act it out and read out together.”

The cast is exceptional: how was the audition process? “What’s great about Angel studios is that they don’t work like any other network or studio so they have no creative oversight, so we weren’t limited to the cast and budget we were looking for; what was beautiful is we got to work with an amazing casting direction, and we wanted the best actors for the job. We didn’t care about the work they’d done before, not what they’d been in, we just wanted the best actor for the role.

Testament_101_Stills / Provided by Angel

“Eben Figueiredo, seeing him on stage performing one of Shakespeare’s most boring roles (in my opinion), and how he brought so much power, passion, and intensity to the most boring character … Kenneth was at a New Year’s party and they started chatting about their work, so we met shortly after, and I just knew he needed to be in the show. Don’t get me wrong, it was a lengthy audition process, and we got to bring in people who were good. No one was gifted a role, everyone had to prove it, we just got to really interrogate and make sure everyone was up to it.

“It felt great to pick the best people. We just tried to emulate Christ in everything that we did. That’s what it means to be a follower: to be like Him, more and more. The more Bible nerdy I got, the mystery of God became a comfort, not a terror. Its such a wonderful thing to be able to say ‘wow, I have no idea, but it’s comforting that I don’t need to know, I can just follow along.’” (RELATED: Everything You Need To Know About Angel Studios’ Next Movie ‘The Last Rodeo’)

You obviously have a huge career ahead of you, so what is next? “We’ve written this to be a multi-season series, so I’ll warn you now: there be cliffhangers coming! We want to do second and third seasons, hopefully as many as five or six to tell the full story. Alongside that, I’m signed on to direct a movie about C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien about their fellowship and faith, which may be in pre-production.””

Watch ‘Testament’ On Angel

I’ve written about a lot of very talented people throughout my career, usually right before the light truly hits and God elevates them to the place He always held for them. Syrstad is one of those people, and I think he might have miraculously answered the prayers of a million people who need to understand Him in a way we’ve never seen before in entertainment.

“Testament” is the type of art that converts nonbelievers. I hope I get to meet some of them soon.