# What movies or TV shows feature bad general American accents? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 22, 2016, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597 "2016-08-22T02:02:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/1 "2016-08-22T02:02:47Z")
I sometimes read about an American actor playing a role of someone from another English speaking country as having done poor job due to a bad accent. I’ve read about this occurring with American actors portraying British, Australian, and Irish characters among others. I’m curious about the reverse. What are some examples of actors from non-USA English speaking countries portraying an American and having a bad general American accent? I’m not looking for actors whose native language isn’t English. I’m interested in actors attempting a general American accent, not a regional accent. I’m basically looking for examples that are the opposite of Hugh Laurie, who did an excellent job in his portrayal of House. Feel free to include performers from radio, stage, video games etc. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/2 "2016-08-22T02:22:15Z")
The just out Imperium with Daniel Radcliffe is fantastic but his American accent is incredibly wobbly. The scenes in which he’s giving a big chunk of monologue seem fine but tossed off asides end up sounding half British. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/3 "2016-08-22T02:45:45Z")
A couple from the BBC: In the early _Doctor Who_ episode “The Chase,” Arne Gordon played a tour guide at the Empire State Building. He’s intended to have a New York accent, but it bears no relation to the real thing, or any accent by any human being speaking English. There was a BBC miniseries in the 70s called “Sprockets” about the early days of the movie business (a thematic sequel to “Flickers,” starring Bob Hoskins and Frances de la Tour). One of the characters was a US studio executive who was in the UK to produce films there. He was supposed to be Jewish, but his accent when he said “oy vey” was completely wrong. Sort of like “OY VEY” with each word enunciated equally instead of “oy VEY” with the stress on the second work. It was hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/4 "2016-08-22T02:52:11Z")
I thought Charlie Hunnam and Charlie Cox did pretty mediocre accents in “Sons of Anarchy” and “Daredevil” respectively. I found it particularly surreal hearing Daredevil speak in a bad American accent with Elektra speaking in a bad English accent. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/5 "2016-08-22T03:35:46Z")
I’ve always felt Jane Seymour’s American accent is a little off. It doesn’t sound natural. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/6 "2016-08-22T03:46:57Z")
[We did this just over a year ago](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=752049) I was about to repeat myself, so I’ll just post what I said there. > [@Worst American accents in mainstream roles](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-american-accents-in-mainstream-roles/715357/2): > > I’ve heard David Tenant’s was bad on the American version of Broadchurch. > > Oddly enough, I also heard the Karen Gilan’s was terrible on that Selfie show. Her real accent is pretty thick. > > I also remember that Shirley Manson tried to do an American accent on Terminator, but they gave up on it after an episode or so. Hers is probably the worst I’ve seen since her real accent is super thick and she isn’t a trained actress. > > James Callis tried to do one on Eurkea, but it was horrible. His real accent is very distinct and hard to override. > > Julianne Moore tried to do a Boston accent on 30 Rock, but it was so bad she might have been kidding. In fact, I’m pretty sure she was. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/7 "2016-08-22T03:51:30Z")
Laura Fraser as Lydia Rodarte-Quayle in ‘Breaking Bad’. I don’t know exactly what put me off, but every time she spoke I thought “You ain’t from around these parts, are ya?” It was overacting or overenunciation. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/8 "2016-08-22T03:54:12Z")
Anthony Head (Giles from Buffy) did a horrible accent on the Legion TV adaptation Dominion. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/9 "2016-08-22T04:11:37Z")
The American accents on **Little Britain** were terrible, but then again Lucas & Walliams weren’t actually trying to sound American; they were putting on exaggerated stereotypes of Americans that British people have. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/10 "2016-08-22T04:14:40Z")
Being that it was comedy their accents being bad may have been part of the joke, but for all of Monty Python’s genius none of them (except Terry Gilliam of course) could do a believable American accent. In the TV shows or the movies. [Doesn’t stop this sketch from being hilarious though…](https://youtu.be/qdNCEL5JKF8?t=31) ---
**Author:** ![TYphoonSignal8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e99b99/32.png) [@TYphoonSignal8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TYphoonSignal8)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/11 "2016-08-22T04:20:55Z")
Chris Hemsworth’s accent (as George Kirk) in the JJ Abrams Star Trek reboot seemed a little off. ---
**Author:** ![BomTek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bomtek/32/21364_2.png) [@BomTek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BomTek)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/12 "2016-08-22T13:41:19Z")
Did you watch _Captain America: Civil War_? It was just one quick scene, but when Tom Holland’s Spider-Man told Cap that he was a “big fan,” you can hear the British accent coming all the way out on “fan.” Sorry, I know you were asking for generally bad American accents, but that one grabbed me when I watched it. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/13 "2016-08-22T14:40:40Z")
I’ve brought this up before – Leo McKern does a superb Rumpole of the Bailey. He did several recordings of Rumpole (for three different audiobooks companies) in which he did all the parts. Generally he did a great job. But in one of them, he had to portray a Canadian, and it was abysmal. His idea of a Canadian accent was …to…talk…very…slow-------ly. (He has an American son-in-law, but on the audiobooks he generally just reports on what he has said.) ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/14 "2016-08-22T20:59:52Z")
Philip Glenister’s “American” accent in [Demons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demons_(TV_series)) was so bad, I didn’t even realize the character was meant to be American until another character brought it up. It’s like he didn’t even try to sound anything but British. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/15 "2016-08-22T21:08:06Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > A couple from the BBC: > > In the early _Doctor Who_ episode “The Chase,” Arne Gordon played a tour guide at the Empire State Building. He’s intended to have a New York accent, but it bears no relation to the real thing, or any accent by any human being speaking English. You don’t have to go that far back. In _Daleks in Manhattan_ (2007) the episode was full of horrible American accents. The BBC budget has gotten a little bigger since they did manage to sneak a couple of actual Americans in the cast for that one. The American accents on BBC in the 60s and 70s in particular were atrocious except for a few ex-pat Americans and Canadians who made a living doing character work. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/16 "2016-08-22T21:15:25Z")
Blindspot is a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. I know it sucks but I still watch. Two of the main characters show widely divergent skills at an American accent. Marianne Jean-Baptiste does an excellent American accent and is a Brit. Sullivan Stapleton is Australian and thinks being American means whispering and being out of breath every 5 words. And for some reason they like showing close ups of his bad teeth but I don’t think that has anything to do with his accent. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/17 "2016-08-22T21:18:55Z")
Paul Blackthorn’s attempt at an American accent as Det. Lance in _Arrow_ is mesmerizingly bad. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/18 "2016-08-22T21:24:58Z")
The American accents on the tv show **Strike Back** are hilariously bad, perhaps intentionally. In an odd bit of casting of the two main characters, Stonebridge, a Brit, is played by an American (Philip Winchester), and Stone, an American, is played by an Australian (Sullivan Stapleton). Stapleton’s American accent is pretty bad, but it’s the guest stars who make things amusing. Think hilariously over-the-top Texas accents. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/19 "2016-08-22T21:25:48Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Paul Blackthorn’s attempt at an American accent as Det. Lance in _Arrow_ is mesmerizingly bad. Really? I always though he did a decent American accent even since the Dresden Files. Alex Kingston who played his ex-wife in Arrow was pretty bad. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597/20 "2016-08-22T21:37:52Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I thought Charlie Hunnam and Charlie Cox did pretty mediocre accents in “Sons of Anarchy” and “Daredevil” respectively. I found it particularly surreal hearing Daredevil speak in a bad American accent with Elektra speaking in a bad English accent. I think they’re both fine. Cox had the drawback of being dead-eyed by necessity. What I thought _was_ amusing is that only Englishman Hunnam and one other actor (I forget who) in S1 could pronounce “Nevada” properly (which most American’s can’t do; Perlman did it wrong). But by the last season, he reverted to Nehvahdah. Laura Fraser in BB was definitely “off.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-movies-or-tv-shows-feature-bad-general-american-accents/763597.md?page=2)