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62 Famous Actors Who Tricked You Into Thinking They're American, But They Aren't

BuzzFeed
13 min read

We asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which actors tricked them into thinking they're American. Here are the wild results.

1.Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Aaron in "Kick-ass" and "Nocturnal Animals"

What you know his American accent from: Kick-Ass, Nocturnal Animals, and A Million Little Pieces

Where he's actually from: Buckinghamshire, England

Lionsgate / Focus Features

2.Melanie Lynskey

Melanie in "Yellowjackets" and "Up in the Air"

"The biggest celeb who tricked me (since I’d never heard her real accent until a recent interview) was Melanie Lynskey! She has such a great American accent!" —sheap

What you know her American accent from: Yellowjackets, Up in the Air, Two and a Half Men, and Togetherness

Where she's actually from: New Plymouth, New Zealand

Showtime / Paramount PIctures

3.Jacob Elordi

Jacob in "Euphoria"

What you know his American accent from: Euphoria and The Kissing Booth series

Where he's actually from: Brisbane, Australia

HBO

4.Florence Pugh

Amy in "Little Women" painting

Suggested by noradominick

What you know her American accent from: Little Women and Midsommar

Where she's actually from: Oxford, England

Sony Pictures Releasing

5.Alan Cumming

Alan in "Spy Kids"

What you know his American accent from: Schmigadoon!, Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, the Spy Kids series, and Annie

Where he's actually from: Aberfeldy, Scotland

Dimension Films

6.Sarah Snook

What you know her American accent from: Succession, Steve Jobs, and Black MirrorWhere she's actually from: Adelaide, Australia

What you know her American accent from: Succession, Steve Jobs, and Black Mirror

Where she's actually from: Adelaide, Australia

HBO

7.Angourie Rice

Angourie in "Spider-Man: Far From Home" and "Mare of Easttown"

What you know her American accent from: Mare of Easttown, Tom Holland's Spider-Man series, and The Nice Guys

Where she's actually from: Sydney, Australia

Sony / Disney / HBO

8.Keiynan Lonsdale

Keiynan kissing Simon in "Love, Simon"

What you know his American accent from: Love, Simon, The Flash, and the Divergent series

Where he's actually from: Sydney, Australia

20th Century Fox

9.Thomas Doherty

Max on "Gossip Girl"

What you know his American accent from: Gossip Girl

Where he's actually from: Edinburgh, Scotland

HBO

10.Kirby Howell-Baptiste

Kirby in "Why Women Kill"

What you know her American accent from: Why Women Kill (and she also used an Australian accent in The Good Place)

Where she's actually from: London

CBS All Access

11.Will Poulter

Will in "We're the Millers" standing by the camper

"I first saw him in The Maze Runner, where he put on an American accent, and I didn't realize until I saw him in Son of Rambow that he's English! He's actually from London." —Costcoffee

What you know his American accent from: We're the Millers, Midsommar, and The Maze Runner series

Where he's actually from: Hammersmith, London

Warner Bros. Pictures

12.Cillian Murphy

Cillian in "Red Eye" and "A Quiet Place II"

Suggested by tmonius1030

What you know his American accent from: A Quiet Place II, Red Eye, Christopher Nola's Batman series, and Inception

Where he's actually from: Cork, Ireland

DreamWorks Pictures / Paramount Pictures

13.Emilia Jones

Emilia signing in "CODA"

What you know her American accent from: CODA and Locke & Key

Where she's actually from: Westminster, London

Apple TV+

14.Eliza Scanlen

Suggested by johnmichaelwWhat you know her American accent from: Little Women, Sharp Objects, and To Kill a Mockingbird on BroadwayWhere she's actually from: Sydney, Australia

Suggested by johnmichaelw

What you know her American accent from: Little Women, Sharp Objects, and To Kill a Mockingbird on Broadway

Where she's actually from: Sydney, Australia

HBO / Sony Pictures Releasing

15.George Sear

George in "Love, Victor"

What you know his American accent from: Love, Victor

Where he's actually from: Essex, England

Hulu

16.Lucy Lawless

Diane and Ron in "Parks and Rec"

Submitted by laurengarafano

What you know her American accent from: Xena: Warrior Princess and Parks and Recreation

Where she's actually from: Mount Albert, Auckland, New Zealand

NBC

17.Antony Starr

Homelander in "The Boys"

"His character is a spoof of Marvel's golden boy Captain America, and he's supposed to represent the US, so I always forget the actor is actually from New Zealand. He nails the American accent!" —hiitsnicetomeetyou

What you know his American accent from: The Boys

Where he's actually from: Auckland, New Zealand

Amazon Prime Video

18.Daniel Kaluuya

Daniel Kaluuya on a late-night talk show

"He did such a great American accent in Get Out that I was completely shocked when I heard him speak in an interview." —yung_cowboy

What you know his American accent from: Judas and the Black Messiah, Get Out, and Widows

Where he's actually from: London

Blumhouse Productions

19.Cynthia Erivo

Cynthia singing in "Bad Times at the El Royale"

"I saw her in The Color Purple on Broadway a few years back, and she was soooo fantastic. Then I did a deep dive and watched a few interviews with her, and I was so surprised to learn she's English." —spenceralthouse

What you know her American accent from: The Color Purple on Broadway, Harriet, Widows, and Bad Times at the El Royale

Where she's actually from: Stockwell, London

20th Century Fox

20.Tom Hopper

Tom in "Umbrella Academy"

What you know his American accent from: The Umbrella Academy and I Feel Pretty

Where he's actually from: Leicestershire, England

Netflix

21.Charlie Heaton

Charlie Heaton in "Stranger Things" wearing a blue shirt

"I didn’t know he was British until I watched an interview with him. His American accent is sooooooo good." —a_disgruntled_pelican

What you know his American accent from: Stranger Things and New Mutants

Where he's actually from: Leeds, England

Netflix

22.Anna Paquin

Sookie in the bar in "True Blood"

Suggested by keladrylady

What you know her American accent from: True Blood and the X-Men series

Where she's actually from: Born in Winnipeg, Canada, but grew up in New Zealand

HBO

23.KJ Apa

KJ as Archie, shirtless, in "Riverdale"

"I saw a few videos online where he spoke with a Kiwi accent and got SO confused because I first saw him on Riverdale." —Sarah Wainschel

What you know his American accent from: Riverdale, A Dog's Purpose, and The Hate U Give

Where he's actually from: Auckland, New Zealand

The CW

24.Freddie Highmore

<div><p>"I had no idea he was English until I heard him speak in an interview!" —<a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/chloeisme16" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:chloeisme16;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">chloeisme16</a></p><p><b>What you know his American accent from:</b> <i>The Good Doctor</i> and <i>Bates Motel</i></p><p><b>Where he's actually from:</b> Camden Town, London</p></div><span> ABC</span>

"I had no idea he was English until I heard him speak in an interview!" —chloeisme16

What you know his American accent from: The Good Doctor and Bates Motel

Where he's actually from: Camden Town, London

ABC

25.Danielle Macdonald

Daniella and Jennifer Aniston in the trailer for &quot;Dumplin&#39;&quot;

"Her Southern accent was so perfect in Dumplin' that I had no idea she wasn't from Texas, let alone Australia." —bonniereinsch

What you know her American accent from: Dumplin', Bird Box, and Unbelievable

Where she's actually from: Sydney, Australia

Netflix

26.Robert Sheehan

Robert in &quot;Umbrella Academy,&quot; holding a cigarette and pink umbrella

"I just binged The Umbrella Academy and then decided to watch some of his other work and found out that he's actually Irish. His American accent is so good, I never would've guessed!" —marie-francel

What you know his American accent from: The Umbrella Academy

Where he's actually from: Port Laoise, Ireland

Netflix

27.James McAvoy

James McAvoy on &quot;The Graham Norton Show&quot;

"I’m usually pretty good at spotting a hidden accent, especially when the character needs to shout, but I only recently found out that he isn't American." —emrayy

What you know his American accent from: It Chapter Two, Wanted, and Split

Where he's actually from: Glasgow, Scotland

BBC America / YouTube / Via youtube.com

28.Katherine Langford

Katherine standing outside in &quot;Love, Simon&quot;

"Her American accent is really good in everything she's in, and I was so shocked when I found out she wasn't American." —a48b5

What you know her American accent from: 13 Reasons Why, Knives Out, and Love, Simon

Where she's actually from: Perth, Western Australia

Netflix

29.John Boyega

Finn with a blue Lightsaber in &quot;Star Wars&quot;

Submitted by fishosaurus

What you know his American accent from: The Star Wars series and Detroit

Where he's actually from: Peckham, London

Lucasfilm Ltd.

30.Isla Fisher

Isla and Vince Vaughn in &quot;Wedding Crashers&quot;

"I only found out like a week ago that Isla Fisher is Australian. I always thought she was American!" —b481d76f3c

What you know her American accent from: Wedding Crashers, Arrested Development, Confessions of a Shopaholic, and Now You See Me

Where she's actually from: Born in Muscat, Oman, but grew up in Perth, Western Australia

New Line Cinema

31.Charlie Cox

Charlie shirtless in his apartment in &quot;Daredevil&quot;

"I was genuinely shocked when I found out he's English because his American accent is flawless!" —joolzr2

What you know his American accent from: Daredevil

Where he's actually from: London

Netflix

32.Andrew Lincoln

Rick&#39;s final scene in &quot;The Walking Dead&quot;

"I had never seen Love Actually, but I had seen him on The Walking Dead, where he had a Southern accent. I was shook to find out he’s actually English." —mirandat439cd0bf9

What you know his American accent from: The Walking Dead

Where he's actually from: London

AMC

33.Christian Bale

The ending of &quot;The Dark Knight Rises&quot; with Christian Bale at the restaurant in Italy

"I’ve seen so many movies of his, and he mostly plays an American character. I never would have known he wasn't American. His accent is spot on." —ser19

What you know his American accent from: The Fighter, The Dark Knight, The Big Short, American Psycho, and Vice

Where he's actually from: Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales

Warner Bros.

34.Mark Addy

Mark as Fred Flintstones in the &quot;Flintstones&quot; movie

"He was the dad on Still Standing, and how could anyone forget him as Fred Flintstone? Who knew he was a total Brit?!" —cocopa

What you know his American accent from: Still Standing, Down to Earth, and The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas

Where he's actually from: York, England

Universal Pictures

35.Rose McIver

Rose in &quot;A Christmas Prince&quot;

"I always thought she was American because she's good at hiding her real accent in iZombie and Netflix's A Christmas Prince series. I watched a video on YouTube where she recapped the movie and was surprised to hear her thick Kiwi accent." —s4bb472acb

What you know her American accent from: Ghosts, A Christmas Prince series, The Lovely Bones, iZombie, and Eddie's Million Dollar Cook-Off

Where she's actually from: Auckland, New Zealand

Netflix

36.Hugh Laurie

Hugh Laurie with a stethoscope in his ears on &quot;House&quot;

"The first time I heard him talk in an interview, I thought he was faking an English accent. I never would have guessed he was actually from England." —K8M517

What you know his American accent from: House

Where he's actually from: Blackbird Leys, Oxfordshire, England

Fox

37.Millie Bobby Brown

Millie in &quot;Stranger Things&quot; in an &#39;80s outfit

"I had no idea she was English when I first watched Stranger Things." —evp722

What you know her American accent from: Stranger Things

Where she's actually from: Born in Marbella, Spain, but grew up in Bournemouth, Dorset, England

Netflix

38.Ryan Kwanten

Ryan shirtless in &quot;True Blood&quot;

"Hearing him speak in his normal Aussie accent instead of his Southern Jason Stackhouse accent broke my brain." —aryasnark

What you know his American accent from: True Blood

Where he's actually from: Sydney, Australia

HBO

39.Ed Westwick

Ed in an Easter-green suit in &quot;Gossip Girl&quot;

Suggested by nwabisa0604

What you know his American accent from: Gossip Girl

Where he's actually from: Hammersmith, London

The CW

40.Rachel Griffiths

Rachel in &quot;Six Feet Under&quot; and &quot;The Rookie&quot;

What you know her American accent from: Six Feet Under, The Rookie, and Brothers & Sisters

Where she's actually from: Melbourne, Australia

HBO / Disney

41.Dominic Cooper

Dominic on the couch in &quot;The Graham Norton Show&quot;

Suggested by Kristin9898

What you know his American accent from: Captain America: The First Avenger, Agent Carter, and Preacher

Where he's actually from: Greenwich, London

BBC America

42.Maureen O’Hara

Maureen talking to Kris Kringle

"I love Old Hollywood, but my jaw DROPPED when I first watched some Maureen O'Hara interviews and heard how strong her Irish accent is. It completely caught me off guard, even though her last name is 'O'Hara' lol." —spenceralthouse

What you know her American accent from: Miracle on 34th Street, The Black Swan, and The Parent Trap

Where she's actually from: Ranelagh, Ireland

20th Century Fox

43.Idris Elba

Idris in &quot;The Office&quot; and &quot;Molly&#39;s Game&quot;

Suggested by tryasimight

What you know his American accent from: The Wire, Molly's Game, Daddy's Little Girls, and The Office

Where he's actually from: Hackney, London

NBC / STX Films

44.Damian Lewis

Damien in &quot;Homeland&quot;

Suggested by mccormickchip

What you know his American accent from: Homeland, Band of Brothers, and Billions

Where he's actually from: St. John's Wood, London

Showtime

45.Margot Robbie

Margot in a pink skating dress on the rink in &quot;I, Tonya&quot;

"She just never sounded Australian to me!" —eskimokiss

What you know her American accent from: Pan Am; I, Tonya; Suicide Squad; The Wolf of Wall Street; and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Where she's actually from: Dalby, Queensland, Australia

Neon

46.Gugu Mbatha-Raw

Gugu in her &#39;80s get-up in &quot;Black Mirror&quot;

"I didn't find out she was actually English for the longest time." —daynam4b6

What you know her American accent from: Black Mirror and The Morning Show

Where she's actually from: Oxford, England

Netflix

47.Henry Cavill

Henry Cavill shirtless in a tub

"I've only ever seen Henry Cavill in Man of Steel, so I really thought he was American. Was totally shocked to learn he’s not!" —Pizzatime

What you know his American accent from: The Justice League series and Mission: Impossible — Fallout

Where he's actually from: Saint Helier, Jersey (a British Crown dependency)

Warner Bros.

48.Cody Fern

Cody in &quot;AHS&quot;

What you know his American accent from: American Horror Story: Apocalypse, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, and House of Cards

Where he's actually from: Southern Cross, Australia

FX

49.Dominic West

Dominic West standing outside in &quot;The Wire&quot;

"I was a huge fan of The Wire, but one day I watched an interview with him for the movie 300, and I was blown away by his English accent." —fbailey6

What you know his American accent from: The Wire, Chicago, and The Affair

Where he's actually from: Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England

HBO

50.Samara Weaving

Samara in a wedding dress in the beginning of &quot;Ready or Not&quot;

Suggested by jessicas454

What you know her American accent from: Ready or Not, The Babysitter, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Hollywood

Where she's actually from: Adelaide, South Australia

Fox Searchlight Pictures

51.Kevin McKidd

Owen in blue scrubs in &quot;Grey&#39;s Anatomy&quot;

Suggested by tracyellysabethcrawford

What you know his American accent from: Grey's Anatomy

Where he's actually from: Elgin, Moray, Scotland

ABC

52.Kate Beckinsale

Kate in &quot;Click&quot;

"I seriously just learned that she's English last week. I had no idea." —hh

What you know her American accent from: Click, Total Recall, and The Aviator

Where she's actually from: Chiswick, London

Sony Pictures Releasing

53.Chiwetel Ejiofor

Chiwetel in &quot;12 Years a Slave&quot;

Suggested by taylorowens

What you know his American accent from: 12 Years a Slave, Z for Zachariah, and Salt

Where he's actually from: Forest Gate, London

Fox Searchlight Pictures

54.Daniel Sharman

Daniel in &quot;Teen Wolf&quot;

Suggested by amyc42

What you know his American accent from: Teen Wolf

Where he's actually from: Hackney, London

MTV

55.Maia Mitchell

Maia in &quot;The Fosters&quot;

Suggested by b4c9f9

What you know her American accent from: The Fosters and the Teen Beach series

Where she's actually from: Lismore, New South Wales, Australia

Freeform

56.Tom Hardy

Tom Hardy in &quot;Venom&quot;

"He just doesn’t give off British vibes to me!" —anyarosem16

What you know his American accent from: Venom, The Revenant, and The Dark Knight Rises

Where he's actually from: Hammersmith, London

Sony Pictures Releasing

57.Yvonne Strahovski

Yvonne in &quot;Chuck&quot; holding a gun

Suggested by chelseam4289

What you know her American accent from: Chuck, The Handmaid's Tale, and Dexter

Where she's actually from: Werrington Downs, New South Wales, Australia

NBC

58.Alfred Enoch

Alfred outside in &quot;How to Get Away with Murder&quot;

Suggested by alyb4532

What you know his American accent from: How to Get Away with Murder

Where he's actually from: Westminster, London

ABC

59.Michael Fassbender

Michael Fassbender shirtless on a bed in &quot;Shame&quot;

Suggested by jennym4

What you know his American accent from: Shame, 12 Years a Slave, Steve Jobs, and Band of Brothers

Where he's actually from: Born in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, West Germany, but grew up in Fossa, County Kerry, Ireland

Momentum Pictures

60.Camila Luddington

<div><p>"This is the only celeb who shocked me. I always forget she's not American! Her accent caught me so off guard in an interview!" —<a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/puppydogpals" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:puppydogpals;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">puppydogpals</a> and <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/alyssag4a2941ad5" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:alyssag4a;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">alyssag4a</a></p><p><b>What you know her American accent from:</b> <i>Grey's Anatomy</i></p><p><b>Where she's actually from</b>: Berkshire, England</p></div><span> ABC</span>

"This is the only celeb who shocked me. I always forget she's not American! Her accent caught me so off guard in an interview!" —puppydogpals and alyssag4a

What you know her American accent from: Grey's Anatomy

Where she's actually from: Berkshire, England

ABC

61.Toni Collette

Toni in &quot;Knives Out&quot;

"She’s extremely convincing when it comes to different accents. For the longest time, I was convinced that she was actually American, until I saw an article that mentioned she’s actually Australian. It blew my mind." —jessiep4a17

What you know her American accent from: Knives Out, Unbelievable, Little Miss Sunshine, The Sixth Sense, and Hereditary

Where she's actually from: Plumpton, New South Wales, Australia

Lionsgate

62.And Guy Pearce

Guy in &quot;Memento&quot; and &quot;Mare of Easttown&quot;

What you know his American accent from: Mare of Easttown, L.A. Confidential, Memento, and Mildred Pierce

Where he's actually from: Cambridgeshire, England

Summit Entertainment / HBO

Are we missing anyone? Use the comments below to tell us which famous person tricked you into thinking they're American!

Note: Submissions have been edited for length and clarity, and not all submissions are from Community users.

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