28 Actors Who Are So Good With Their Accents You’d Think They're American, But They Aren't
They've managed to fool the audience into believing that they are Americans.
With the world's population developing more consistently than ever, it's no surprise that a significant number of our top stars come from different countries. Every once in a while, a subtly Canadian entertainer like Michael J. Fox or Anna Paquin would appear on a television show, and no one would notice.
However, nowadays, there are so many popular actors who aren't American that people genuinely believe they are American citizens. We feel it's important to inform our audience about who's actually who in this game of fame.
These big names all come from different places, and they arrive in America for various reasons. Some of them emigrated with their families, while others didn't arrive on our shores until much later in their chosen careers.
Whatever it was that brought them here, the one thing they all share, practically speaking, is that we love watching their performances. Perhaps the most astounding disguise a non-American performer can wear is one that involves pretending to be American.
Surprisingly, these actors and actresses tend to conceal their natural accents to secure roles. Well, individuals from the BuzzFeed Community have been asked to mention actors who they were astounded to find out really weren't American, and they delivered.
We’ve compiled some of their responses for your enlightenment, so keep scrolling and enjoy.
1. Daniel Kaluuya is actually from London
"I knew him from Skins, but his performance and American accent were so good in everything else that I totally forgot he was English."
Universal2. Margot Robbie is actually from Dalby, Queensland, Australia
"I’m so used to her American accent that whenever I hear her real Australian accent, it feels fake. It's almost like it’s dubbed or something. It’s actually a bit of a mind f**k."
Paramount / Sony Pictures Releasing / Warner Bros.3. Alan Cumming is actually from Aberfeldy, Scotland
"He has a very believable American accent."
Dimension Films / CBS
4. Daniel Ezra is actually from Birmingham, England
"He plays a teenager who grew up in LA, but he's actually British. I was shocked the first time I heard him speak in real life."
The CW
5. Tom Holland is actually from Kingston upon Thames, England
"I was completely convinced he was American until I started watching some interviews. I was absolutely blown away by the fact that his accent was fake! I saw a video once where he spent the whole time switching back and forth between his regular British accent and his American accent, and it was wild to see how easily he can turn it on and off."
BBC
6. Andrew Lincoln is actually from London
"I had no idea he was British until he went on Talking Dead and spoke with Chris Hardwick."
AMC
7. Alfred Enoch is actually from Westminster, London
"He has the most spot-on American accent. It's flawless."
ABC
8. Henry Cavill is actually from St. Helier, Jersey, British Isles
"I had no clue he was British for the longest time. I even had to double-check before posting this because I was still second-guessing myself."
Warner Bros.
9. Robert Pattinson is actually from London
"Even though my first introduction to him was as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter, I always forget he’s actually British. Whenever he speaks in his actual accent in any other movie, it just sounds so strange!"
Summit / Netflix
10. Antony Starr is actually from Auckland, New Zealand
"His character is a spoof of Marvel's golden boy Captain America, and he's supposed to represent the USA, so I always forget the actor is actually from New Zealand. He nails the American accent!"
Amazon Prime
11. Robert Sheehan is actually from Port Laoise, Ireland
"I just binge-watched The Umbrella Academy, then decided to watch some of his other works and found out that he's actually Irish. His American accent is so good that I never would have guessed!"
Netflix
12. Idris Elba is actually from Hackney, London
"Idris Elba's Baltimore accent is incredibly good. I watched the entirety of The Wire before I ever knew he was British!"
NBC / HBO
13. Charlie Cox is actually from East Sussex, England
"His American accent is especially impressive when he also has to focus on challenging fight scenes."
Netflix
14. Hugh Dancy is actually from Stoke-on-Trent, England
"Hugh Dancy does a great job of completely masking his British accent. How he does this while acting so incredibly is a mystery to the common man."
NBC
15. Danielle Macdonald is actually from Sydney
"When I watched her in Dumplin', there was literally no doubt in my mind that she was from the South — or at least from America. But guess what? I was bamboozled! The girl is AUSTRALIAN!!! I would have never guessed that in a million years. That perfect Southern accent literally had us all fooled. Someone get this woman an award."
Netflix
16. Charlie Hunnam is actually from Newcastle upon Tyne, England
"I was shocked when I heard his actual voice for the first time."
AMC / Warner Bros.
17. Dominique Provost-Chalkley is actually from Bristol, England
"Her whole performance as Waverly on Wynonna Earp is brilliant, but the American accent genuinely fooled me. There was one episode where her character faked a British accent, and I was stunned when I found out that was actually her real voice."
Syfy
18. Gugu Mbatha-Raw is actually from Oxford, England
"I didn't find out she was actually English for the longest time."
Netflix
19. Hugh Jackman is actually from Sydney
"I didn’t know Hugh Jackman was Australian until much more recently than I would like to admit. I grew up watching the X-Men series and later saw The Greatest Showman, and it never even occurred to me that he wasn’t American! Not even Les Miserables gave it away!"
20th Century Fox
20. Dan Stevens is actually from Croydon, London
"He slips so easily into a flawless American accent."
FX
21. Toni Collette is actually from Sydney
"I've never seen any of her Australian roles and didn't realize she wasn't American until I saw it in a BuzzFeed article. She's done so many projects with an American accent, and she sounds so natural in all of them."
Showtime / Lionsgate / A24
22. Cynthia Erivo is actually from Stockwell, London
"I saw her in The Color Purple on Broadway, and she was so fantastic. Then I did a deep dive and watched a few interviews with her, and I was so surprised to learn she's English."
20th Century Fox
23. Dominic Purcell was actually born in Wallasey, Merseyside, England, but moved to Bondi, New South Wales, Australia
"He has a very convincing accent in both Prison Break and the Arrowverse. Listening to him speak in interviews is like listening to a completely different man."
Fox/The CW
24. Millie Bobby Brown was actually born in Marbella, Málaga, Andalusia, Spain, but moved to Bournemouth, Dorset, England
"I knew at one point that she wasn’t American but then totally forgot about it. I just recently watched a video with her in it, and when she spoke, I was so confused! Props to her and her awesome American accent!"
Netflix
25. Christian Bale is actually from Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales
"The first thing I saw him in was Newsies way back in the early '90s. I had no idea he was Welsh. Since then, some of his most famous roles have been with his American accent, but I forget every time that he’s not really American."
Lionsgate / Warner Bros.
26. Charlie Heaton is actually from Leeds, England
"I didn’t know he was British until I watched an interview with him. His American accent is sooooooo good."
Netflix
27. Florence Pugh is actually from Oxford, England
"I first saw her in Midsommar and fell in love with her! Then I followed her on Instagram and watched some of her stories and was totally caught off guard when she started speaking with a British accent. Her American accent is flawless."
A24 / Sony Pictures Releasing
28. Hugh Laurie is actually from Blackbird Leys, Oxford, England
"After seeing House, I didn't believe he was British. I had to dig up interviews on YouTube to prove it."
Fox
These actors and actresses have managed to fool the audience into believing that they are American but really aren't. Which of them surprised you the most to see on this list?
Do you have any other actors or actresses you want to add to this list? Drop all your thoughts and comments below.