I've noticed American accents break when British actors have to get emotional. Like Andrew Garfield suddenly becoming British again when he's crying or yelling in the ASM movies.
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Which British actor speaks the best American?
- Thread starter Septimus Prime
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I've noticed American accents break when British actors have to get emotional. Like Andrew Garfield suddenly becoming British again when he's crying or yelling in the ASM movies.
Doc Holliday
SPOILER: Columbus finds America
Idris alba, he sounded the most naturally gangsta out of all the dudes on the Wire. I was shocked when I found out alba was English.
Maklershed
Member
Nice another Ben Mendelsohn fan. I had no idea he was in Rogue One going in and was pumped to see him right away. Check out Killing Them Softly if you haven't yet, he is incredible in that as a fuck up heroin addict. Not sure if it's still on there but it had been on Netflix streaming for awhile.The most recent actor to blow my mind with his foreign herritage was this guy:
Ben Mendelsohn, he's an aussie in disguise, but after seeing his performances in Bloodline, Place beyond the Pines, Dark knight rises I thought he was absolutely american, but after seeing a rogue one interview with his real accent....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJBwgRMSnnc
Just damn, I can't believe he nailed that performance as much as he did.
(you should all watch bloodline by the way)
thecosmicfly
Banned
The Prince Regent.
catapult37
Member
ITT: tons of people who desperately need to watch "A Bit of Fry and Laurie"
ffejeromdiks
Banned
Damn, I've actually seen it but it was before I really knew who he was so it didn't register that he starred in that one as well. He plays the white-trash role to perfection, just pitch perfect.
Excellent first post.
Johnny Cage In The Shower
Member
What about the guy GAF loves to hate, does he count as a good accent disguiser? I think in his case, he had his Aussie accent in his early films, but lived in America long enough to gradually lose it??
Grizzlyjin
Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
Him and Gerard Butler just can't sell an American accent to me. I think Butler gave up, I have no idea if he's even trying in the 'Has Fallen' movies. Like literally I'm not sure if his character is supposed to be an American or not.
radios shipping overview
Member
Cumberbatch is awful at an American accent. Sorry. He should only be hired to speak received pronunciation.
Funnily enough, Martin Freeman is as just as good (in Fargo, at least) as Cumberbatch is bad.
Funnily enough, Martin Freeman is as just as good (in Fargo, at least) as Cumberbatch is bad.
efyu_lemonardo
May I have a cookie?
'ello govna!
Phreakuency
Banned
Totally agree. Never understood how the bad accents allowed for oscar awards really.
Other bad Aussies, Sam Worthington (one of the worst), Margot Robbie (some words are fine but in Suicide Squad every third word had an Aussie accent to it) and the Hemsworth brothers.
Rest
All these years later I still chuckle at what a fucking moron that guy is.
Mel Gibson is from America, he was born in New York. He picked up an Australian accent during childhood and dropped it when he moved back to the US.
broncobuster
Banned
Yeah. His accent stood out in Doctor Strange. It's almost nasally.
Rest
All these years later I still chuckle at what a fucking moron that guy is.
I think that's his voice.
Spikematic
Member
WOW,ok I would never have guessed this. He does a stellar job. Hugh Laurie does a pretty perfect accent too.
He's not trying to do a NY accent, I didn't even realize he was British until this post.
Source: A Lifetime NYer
broncobuster
Banned
No. He sounds fine with his normal accent.
Maximus P
Member
Probably Christian Bale for me too as it was a bit of a shock when I first found out he was Welsh, or maybe the guy who plays Kickass Aaron Taylor Johnson.
The worst ive heard is the comedian Chris Evans. I found his accent in Something about Mary and the Fifth Element cringworthy.
The worst ive heard is the comedian Chris Evans. I found his accent in Something about Mary and the Fifth Element cringworthy.
iMAGINATION
Banned
Jordan Gavaris but he's canadian
Peter Dinklage.
Damn that's exactly how english sounded to me back in the days when I didn't speak the language lol
Professor Beef
Banned
I wanna give a special mention to Jacob Anderson, who you can listen to here as he pretends to be an American doing a British accent.
Chuckie
Member
This is so true. Especially the younger generations speak American English, not British English.
I was talking with two girls from Australia once and they actually thought I was an American (I am Dutch)
Renee Zellweger - lots of people don't realise she's from Texas
Angelina Jolie does a very good posh received pronunciation in Maleficent/Tomb Raider
American accents are everywhere in media so it's easier to learn. Also, non-American actors are often specifically taught American accents as part of their training, to help them get jobs where an American accent is needed.
Sorry but Dinklage's accent as Tyrion is rather awful. I've accepted its weirdness as part of his character but in the early seasons it sticks out like a sore thumb against the genuine British actors.
AllIsOneIsNone
Banned
Not sure, but on the opposite end, I found Fassbender's American accent in Steve Jobs terrible. Not at one moment did he pass as Jobs to me. It was a solid movie, but I think Fassbender gets a little too much credit for this one. Not one moment did he convince me he was Steve Jobs. Dare I say Kutcher was almost a more accurate portrayal.
I think the reason it's more common to find a Briton doing a great American accent than the opposite is that, traditionally, British actors are much more classically trained, and that probably lends itself to being handy when adopting new speech patterns/pronunciations. There are obviously still great acting training institutions in the States (mostly in New York), but I think the British film/television industry is built to field and develop young actors over time, allowing them to grow before dropping huge projects on their lap, whereas in the States, it's all over the place.
(This is also kind of a generalization - anomalies happen and there are certainly examples)
(This is also kind of a generalization - anomalies happen and there are certainly examples)
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