# British, which American actor has nailed your accent the best. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 25, 2006, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196 "2006-05-25T17:19:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/121 "2006-05-28T22:28:22Z")
> [@MidnightRadio](#): > > > [@Cunctator](#): > > > > I’ve never heard a non-Australian actor/ress do a convincing Australian accent. > > Not even Meryl Streep? I thought her attempt at an Australian accent in \*Evil Angels \* (aka _A Cry in the Dark_) was terrible. ---
**Author:** ![garius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e19b73/32.png) [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/122 "2006-05-28T23:15:48Z")
Out of interest, what’s the opinion of the Americans here on the accents in _Band of Brothers_, given that a higher-than-you’d think percentage of that cast is British as well? ---
**Author:** ![DxZero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DxZero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DxZero)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2006, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/123 "2006-05-28T23:39:51Z")
> [@garius](#): > > Out of interest, what’s the opinion of the Americans here on the accents in _Band of Brothers_, given that a higher-than-you’d think percentage of that cast is British as well? Hey, I’m watching that right now. **Damien Lewis’s (Captain Winters)** accent is pretty good, but it definetely doesn’t seem natural. He talks real slowly and deliberately in real life and that kind of makes his accent seem forced. **Marc Warren (Private Blithe)**, whom I just realized is the guy from **Hustle** , sounds like he’s doing a passable Carolina type accent. Again, its pretty deliberate, but that might just be how his character is supposed to talk. **Shane Taylor (“Doc” Roe**) had to do a Cajun accent which is pretty difficult for anyone who hasn’t heard it their whole life to try and attempt. I’m not entirely sure if he’s accurate. It doesn’t sound Cajun, but it definetely doesn’t sound British. Those are the three that come to mind immediately and they’re all fairly good, as were all the other aspects of that series. ---
**Author:** ![Zahava424](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/76d3ee/32.png) [@Zahava424](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zahava424)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/124 "2006-05-29T00:34:41Z")
> [@astro](#): > > The "[Without A Trace" lead actor Anthony LaPaglia](http://www.tv.com/anthony-lapaglia/person/35179/summary.html) is also Australian I think he spoke in his native accent when he guested as Daphne’s no-good brother on _Frasier_. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/125 "2006-05-29T00:55:26Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > Huh. Funny, I think her natural Philly accent is so sexy. But I can see why she would try something like that. Wait, she’s from Michigan. Ummm… Oh, yes, Hugh Laurie as House, very good, yes. :slinks out: ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/126 "2006-05-29T01:29:28Z")
> [@Zahava424](#): > > I think he spoke in his native accent when he guested as Daphne’s no-good brother on _Frasier_. But Daphne’s supposedly English isn’t she? Her accent sounds a bit Scouse to my ears. Why would her brother have an Australian accent? ---
**Author:** ![Subterraneanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Subterraneanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subterraneanus)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/127 "2006-05-29T02:06:13Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > I was pleasantly surprised when Orlando Bloom correctly pronounced “Oregon” in _Elizabethtown_. Which means he can do what most Americans can’t. ---
**Author:** ![sjc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@sjc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sjc)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/128 "2006-05-29T02:36:33Z")
Regarding whether Americans or Brits have an easier time doing each other’s accents, I’d guess that Brits have it easier. In the first place I’m pretty sure they get more access to hearing bona fide American accents than Americans do to bona fide British accents. In fact I’d say that non-Americans in general get to hear more real American accents than Americans get to here real non-American accents. Additionally the regional differences in American English are not as pronounced as in British English so its easier for Brits to choose which accent to use (whereas Americans will often have the problem mentioned above in connection to Brad Pitt where he used bits from a bunch of different regional accents). ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/129 "2006-05-29T02:38:45Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > But Daphne’s supposedly English isn’t she? Her accent sounds a bit Scouse to my ears. Why would her brother have an Australian accent? Daphne was from Manchester. However, I thought her brother sounded more Cockney. (Not being from the UK, how much of a difference is there between Cockney and Manchester accents?) ---
**Author:** ![sjc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@sjc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sjc)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/130 "2006-05-29T02:39:00Z")
Oh, and as an American I think Hugh Laurie’s accent in house it pretty good. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/131 "2006-05-29T03:42:33Z")
I was under the impression that most Brits thought that Anthony LaPaglia’s accent as Daphne’s brother was a mess. He was supposed to be from Manchester, but his accent came out like a bad try at Cockney. I blame whoever the casting director was for _Frasier_ for hiring LaPaglia without checking if he could do a Manchester accent. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/132 "2006-05-29T04:00:19Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > But Daphne’s supposedly English isn’t she? Her accent sounds a bit Scouse to my ears. Why would her brother have an Australian accent? Daphne is an example of an English actress doing an English accent very badly. Jane Leeves is from London/Sussex and does a terrible Mancunian accent. ---
**Author:** ![MidnightRadio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@MidnightRadio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MidnightRadio)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/133 "2006-05-29T07:55:12Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > A-la-BA-m’uh. All short As apart from the last syllable. Am I right? Yes. The reason I asked: I have a waiter friend who said one of his English customers pronounced it AHL-buh-muh. I wondered if maybe that was common over there. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/134 "2006-05-29T08:04:03Z")
> [@MidnightRadio](#): > > Yes. The reason I asked: I have a waiter friend who said one of his English customers pronounced it AHL-buh-muh. I wondered if maybe that was common over there. Nope, never heard that one at all. > [@amarone](#): > > Daphne is an example of an English actress doing an English accent very badly. Jane Leeves is from London/Sussex and does a terrible Mancunian accent. I’ve read an interview with Jane Leeves, where she said it was a deliberatly-false accent, because it needed to be one recognisably-British to American ears, but also one they could understand. Not patronising, just realistic - a genuine working-class Mancunian accent would cause as much trouble as _Trainspotting_ did. Pointless trivia - there was one genuine Mancunian in the main cast of Frasier. John Mahoney - Marty Crane - was born there. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/135 "2006-05-29T10:13:06Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > Iben Hjelje, who is a Dane, played an American in _High Fidelity_ and her performance suffered from the “trying too hard” stiff face and mouth control. Was she supposed to be American? I always assumed she was expat European, just on accent alone. She’s just “Laura”, no obvious surname, IIRC. **_Jonathon_ La Paglia** , Anthony’s brother, was never obviously not American in Seven Days.\*Interesting to find out he’s a qualified MD. How was **Cillian Murphy** (Irish) in Batman Begins? I seem to recall him sounding pretty American. **Melanie Lynskey** (Kiwi) doesn’t sound off to me as Rose in Two and a Half Men\* - I know these are not Brit, but I think we’ve drifted away from that ---
**Author:** ![zagloba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/977dab/32.png) [@zagloba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zagloba)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/136 "2006-05-29T12:08:20Z")
**foolsguinea** , referring to Madonna, said: “Huh. Funny, I think her natural Philly accent is so sexy. But I can see why she would try something like that.” Why would she have a Philly accent? Wasn’t she raised in Detroit? ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/137 "2006-05-29T12:15:39Z")
I think some people are going to get a bit of a shock when they watch _The Wind That Shakes The Barley_ and hear Cillian Murphy’s real (Cork) accent. He’s done American in _Batman Begins_ and _Redeye_, and Irishman living in the UK in _28 Days Later_, he even managed a passable Ulster accent in _Breakfast on Pluto_, but most people won’t have heard him speak like a true Corkman. ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/138 "2006-05-29T16:04:59Z")
> [@Ponder Stibbons](#): > > I was astounded by Jamie Griffith (Sci Fi’s Battlestar Galactica) the first time I heard him in an interview and realized he was British. I would never have guessed from his portrayal of Apollo. You mean Jamie Bamber? I had no idea he wasn’t American either! I also have to remind myself that Paltrow is American and Hugh Laurie isn’t. In my experience, it seems that it’s easier for a foreigner to do American than the other way around. I wonder if it’s the exposure rate… do people outside of America hear a lot more American accents than Americans hear Brits or Australians? ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2006, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/139 "2006-05-29T16:14:29Z")
I meant to add: Hugh Jackman does well in XMen, unless he gets really mad, then his Aussie shows. ---
**Author:** ![lisacurl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/41988e/32.png) [@lisacurl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisacurl)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2006, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196/140 "2006-05-30T14:49:53Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > > [@Wendell Wagner](#): > > > > Madonna is a weird case. Several years before moving to the U.K. to move in with Guy Ritchie, have a baby, and get married, her accent started changing. No one understood what the heck she was trying for. It sounded vaguely (but only vaguely) British, but mostly it sounded weird. Some people guessed that she was taking elocution lessons from an insane teacher. > > Huh. Funny, I think her natural Philly accent is so sexy. But I can see why she would try something like that. Madonna is from Detroit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-which-american-actor-has-nailed-your-accent-the-best/358196.md?page=8)