There are very few things in life that are as attractive as a foreign accent. It's intriguing, sometimes unfamiliar, and honestly, whoever has a foreign accent has a good chance of getting whatever significant other they want.
So fans will be pleasantly surprised to see some of the celebrities on this list. As actors, they are required to put on whatever accent their role calls for and they clearly do a very convincing job at it because hey, people had no idea!
Since the internet gives people access to so much information, it's come out that quite a number of everyone's favorite actors aren't from the US at all. For instance, everybody knows that Gal Gadot is from Israel and that Hugh Grant is from England (it also helps that they act using their own accents). But then there are those actors who fans are used to seeing playing characters that speak with a US accent.
As actors, they have graced both small and big screens, and they have given fans very incredible and convincing US accents. While their work life involves putting on their best accents for whatever role they are portraying, off-screen, they have distinct accents from their home countries.
Of course, it's hard to tell all of this in films or on TV. So read on for 20 celebs who unexpectedly have accents!
20 Charlie Hunnam Is Actually From Across The Pond
38-year-old Sons of Anarchy actor Charlie Hunnam is best known for his role as Jax Teller on the TV show. While he obviously plays a US-born man in that role, he is actually originally from England–Newcastle, to be specific.
His accent was first revealed to many fans through an interview and as DailyStar highlights, many viewers were just perplexed by his accent as they just couldn’t pin point where he is from.
“One viewer said: ‘Where is Charlie Hunnam from? He sounds like he’s got a mixed accent.’ Another viewer added: ‘Still so weird hearing Charlie Hunnam Talk... He pulls off [the US] accent perfectly.’”
19 Colin Farrell Never Acts In His True Accent
We can certainly all agree that Colin Farrell is a very good-looking man (well, if you don’t agree, move on to the next point on the list because warning–we’re about to unleash our obsession over the actor). He’s got the dark hair, great tan, and dark eyes that make it seem like they are piercing through our soul. The actor has been involved in multiple US movie projects and of course, has used US accents to play these roles. This doesn’t make him a native though. Nope, the man is from Ireland. We’re reminded of his accent every time he has an interview and we must admit–we wish we could hear much more of his natural accent.
18 Sam Worthington Is From Down Under
Okay, so number 18 on our list is interesting because of the fact that not everyone is crazy about Sam Worthington’s accent.
While the many actors on this list have surprised a number of people by revealing that they’re actually anything but a native US-English speaker, with Sam, people suspected it as soon as he opened his mouth in Avatar.
And of course, you know how the internet can be a little harsh about not liking something so, needless to say, the actor was given a tough time. If you’re wondering why he sounded a bit odd and what his actual accent it, he’s actually all the way from Australia, people!
17 Toni Collette Has Her Accent Hidden
The first actress on our list who manages to artfully morph into any character she’s playing is Tony Colette. You’re forgiven for thinking she’s from the USA. After her roles in Little Miss Sunshine and The Sixth Sense, who could blame you? You’re also forgiven for assuming that she’s from England. Have you seen BBC One’s Wanderlust? She gives an incredible accent there but again, she’s just acting.
The star is actually from Australia. She was a big actress Down Under and even starred in a couple of roles with Russell Crowe before deciding to move to Hollywood. Well, sorry to our Aussie fans out there, but we’re glad Toni decided to come this side.
16 Noamie Harris Is Actually From The UK
At number 16, we have yet another incredible actress who clearly had us all fooled because we had no idea that she’s not from the US. The talented actress has starred in many incredible roles but one notable role recently was her portrayal in Moonlight. We’re not going to get into too many details about the acting because hey, you already know that it was spectacular.
We just want to highlight the fact that after that role, no one would have thought that she’s actually from the UK.
Like, nobody. The only time we’re reminded of her accent is when she sits down for interviews and we’re honestly just in awe of the accent chameleon this lady truly is.
15 Damian Lewis Is From London
We have yet another UK actor on our list and this time, it is London-born Damian Lewis. Damian has played multiple roles on US TV and film and you may know him best from his Homeland role. What’s interesting about Damian, in particular, is the fact that he has acted with his US accent so much that his own accent is something that doesn’t come as naturally anymore.
Damian explained this in an interview on ABC News. “I go get my groceries in an accent. And I get halfway through paying and I’m like, ‘I’m sorry. I’m [from here], and I have no idea why I’m talking in a [US] accent to you but I’ve been doing it all week.”
14 Dominic West Has Nailed His Fake Baltimore Accent
We’re at number 14 on our list and we’re not sure if you’ve noticed a certain trend–there are so many incredible UK-born actors in America. And the most bizarre part of it all is how well they nail their on-screen accents.
Don’t know about you but we’re not so sure about how well we could pull off a UK accent!
Maybe the pressure of millions of viewers tuning in every week is part of what inspires some of these actors to really do their best. Here, we have The Wire’s Dominic West. In the show, he has a Baltimore accent but in real life, he’s born in Yorkshire, England.
13 We Want To Hear Theo James' UK Accent More
Now, number 13 on our list is definitely unfair to all our male readers out there. As if Theo James wasn’t attractive enough, now he’s got a foreign accent to go with it? The Divergent actor is actually from England. The only time we get to pick up his accent is, of course, through interviews or award shows. Then we just stay glued to our TV screens as we can’t believe how gorgeous an individual can really be… and now he’s got an accent to top it off. Not so sure about you, but we’re thinking of starting a campaign to get Theo James in more UK-based roles so that we can hear that amazing accent on that man more often.
12 Isla Fisher Is From Australia
This has to be one of the biggest surprises on our list. Isla Fisher is not from the US, people! Yeah, we know. We had to double check our sources but trust us when we say–we were astounded as well. With all her roles in iconic movies, who would have thought that she’s not from America?
Well, this talented actress actually has roots in Scotland but was born and raised in Australia.
Isla joked that the US accent is actually easy to pull off, which is why actors from Australia don’t have a tough time trying out for roles. She explained to DailyMail, “We can all do the accent really easily. And we all look great in a bikini. Including Russell Crowe – no one pulls off a bikini like Russell.”
11 Ed Westwick Is Actually From The UK
Wait, what? Chuck Bass is actually not from the US? Well, "Chuck Bass" was born and raised in the US, but Ed Westwick, the actor who plays this iconic Gossip Girl character, is from the UK. What’s most interesting about Ed’s story is the fact that his fans seems to prefer him in a his on-screen accent, which is odd, considering how much people generally love foreign accents.
Ed explained on The Graham Norton Show that, “So many fans are disappointed to find out I am [from the UK]. One girl said about my accent, ‘What are you doing? Why are you speaking like that?’” Not so sure about you, but we definitely don’t mind hearing Ed speak in his accent so, according to us, he is more than welcomed to continue.
10 Hugh Laurie Has A Proper English Accent
At number 10 on our list, we have one of the best television actors to grace our screens. Hugh Laurie was so incredible as Dr. House (and of course, the show was hugely successful), that he soon earned himself the title of being the most paid actor on television a few years ago.
If we didn’t have access to the internet or if he had never been interviewed before, we would have no idea that the man is actually from the UK.
This just tells you how impeccable his accent truly is. While some foreign actors who play roles have “okay” accents, no one would have guessed that Dr. House was anything but a native US-English speaker.
9 Andrew Garfield Is Not From New York, Everybody
The Amazing Spider-Man lead, Andrew Garfield, surprised plenty of fans on Twitter back in 2017 when he was interviewed and used his actual accent. “Wait, Andrew Garfield is [from the UK]?” was the general sentiment among viewers and you know what, we totally understand why. The actor hardly plays any roles in his native accent (any roles that have really made him big) and the biggest he’s had so far, The Amazing Spider-Man franchise, had him speaking in a New York accent. Now this one on our list just shows how, when you’re persistent and want to be really good at something, you can manage to do it.
8 Russell Crowe Is Not From England, But From New Zealand
Russell Crowe is an interesting addition to our list because, for a very long time, people knew that he wasn’t from the US. Many people just assumed that the actor was just from the UK but nope, that couldn’t be further from the truth. The star is not from the US, nor is he from the US.
He is actually all the way from New Zealand but spends a considerable amount of his time in Australia, which is probably why he manages to also do a convincing accent from there, too.
This has, however, contributed to many people asking themselves what his Robin Hood accent is. Perhaps a combination of all the places he’s lived in?
7 Yael Stone Knows How To Fake An Accent
To all our Orange Is The New Black readers out there, we know that this one is going to come as a surprise, so we encourage you to take a moment and sit down before you continue reading this part. Yael Stone, who plays Morello, is actually not from the US. Morello’s accent is so thick on the show that you can be forgiven for assuming that it’s all natural, or at least from some part of the US. But nope, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Yael is actually from Down Under. We didn’t see this one coming so all we can say to that is–that’s some great acting.
6 Margot Robbie Is From Australia
This Oscar-nominated actress has found stardom in recent years from her incredible roles in Wolf of Wall Street and I, Tonya.
Just like many of her fellow peers that we’ve already mentioned on our list, you might be surprised to find out that Margot Robbie is actually also all the way from Australia.
While on The Graham Norton Show, The Irish Examiner explained, the actress joked about how she managed to pull off her accent in one of her roles. “My acting coach said to pretend I had just had acrylic nails put on and then the accent and attitude would come and it totally worked.”
5 Andrew Lincoln, The US Hero, Is Actually From The UK
Southern accents are not always the easiest to get, especially for a foreigner. This is the reason why we’re very much impressed by the Southern accent that England-born actor, Andrew Lincoln, gives us on AMC’s hit series The Walking Dead. The actor stays in Georgia with his family when the TV series is filming and tells The Guardian that it sometimes freaks out his family how good his Southern accent is. “It’s very unsettling for them sometimes, because they don’t know who they’re talking to.” Well, considering the fact that he nails his accent, we’re not blaming his wife and kids on this one.
4 Alan Cumming Is All the Way From Scotland
As an actor, singer, director, producer, writer, and activist, Alan Cumming has had an incredible professional stint that he can be proud of. He has had so many hit shows, that we have grown accustomed to hearing him speak in a US-English accent. But yet again, this couldn’t be furthest from his real accent.
Alan is actually from Scotland, but as of 2008, he also officially became a US citizen.
He explains to The Irish Times the process of taking the test to qualify. “Even becoming a citizen is like a game show in America. At one point during the test you’ve got to get six questions out of 10 right. When I did it, I got the first six right and the man actually said, ‘You’ve got the six; do you want to go for the 10?’”
3 Simon Baker's Accent Is So Unexpected
At number 3 on our list, we have yet another gent from Australia, and this time, it is The Mentalist lead, Simon Baker. We just want to go ahead and point out some interesting facts we’ve picked up while compiling this list (hopefully, you’ve picked it up as well). There is an incredible number of actors from both the UK and Australia who are doing great things in the US. For many of them, it must have not been easy to leave behind everything they’ve known and grown accustomed to and try their luck in Hollywood, but they did and clearly, they succeeded. This just emphasis that a little talent, hard work, and self-belief will get you far in life.
2 Nope, Renee Zellweger Is Not From The UK
Alright, number 2 on our list comes with a bit of a twist. We all know Renee Zellweger from her leading role in Bridget Jones. She nails the actress so much that most people just forget that she’s actually NOT from the UK. Sure, we’ve seen Renee in a couple of other films but in recent years, Bridget Jones has been her iconic role.
So, of course, we don’t expect her to be exactly like her character in the film series but we at least expect her to have a little bit of the accent she pulls off so well.
But nope, that’s not the case at all. Renee is actually from the US, the south actually, and we’re reminded of that every time she does an interview.
1 Christian Bale Still Has His Accent
Number 1 on our list is Christian Bale. We thought it was fitting to place him at number 1 because something interesting happened recently. You see, Christian went to the Golden Globe awards this year and was then awarded as Best actor in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical for his portrayal of former Vice President Dick Cheney in the movie Vice.
He then went on stage to accept his award and proceeded to confuse everyone online when he spoke with an accent. Nope, he wasn’t pulling a Madonna on us people. Christian is actually not from the US, but from the UK.
Sources: ABC News, Daily Mail, The Guardian
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