The List Of Bad English Accents In Film Is Pretty Long — Here's 9 That Were Amazing And 8 That Were Dreadful

There's more to life than a Cockney accent!!

Recently Reddit user, u/Bloody__Mess posed the question, "Which actors had the best or worst British accents?" and the proverbial tea is ~scalding~!

VH1 / Via giphy.com

Let's see if you agree with these takes:

1. Nailed it: Renée Zellweger

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"I always thought Renée Zellweger did a pretty good accent in Bridget Jones's Diary, though. I didn't realise when I was younger that she wasn't British"

—u/berbiertbg

2. Failed it: Don Cheadle

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"Don Cheadle in the Oceans films are still painful to listen to for me."

—u/EightLions539

3. Nailed it: Chris Pratt

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"Chris Pratt does a pretty awesome Essex accent!"

—u/eyeball-beesting

4. Failed it: Matt Damon

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"The worst ones are so bad that I genuinely can’t tell if they were actually attempting a British accent or not, e.g. Matt Damon in The Last Duel."

—u/thewearisomeMachine

5. Nailed it: Scarlett Johansson

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"Scarlett Johansson does a great English accent in The Prestige."

—u/Beemzebub

6. Failed it: Keanu Reeves

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"Keanu Reeves in Bram Stoker's Dracula is pretty awful. I'd say that one tops it for me."

—u/TarcFalastur

7. Nailed it: James Marsters

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"James Marsters as Spike in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, except the word lilac, I remember being really surprised at the time he was American."

— u/miss_lottielou

8. Failed it: Russell Crowe

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"Russell Crowe in Robin Hood was dreadful."

— u/Deadlykipper

9. Nailed it: Emma Stone

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"Emma Stone in Cruella — people say she’s very good at sounding British."

— u/Cookeina_92

10. Failed it: Charlie Hunnam

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"He’s from Newcastle yet did an abysmal East London accent in Green Street Hooligans."

— u/h0m3r

11. Nailed it: Brad Dourif

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"Brad Dourif as Grima Wormtongue in Lord of The Rings was the best — I can’t believe he’s the guy that voiced Chucky! Absolutely flawless."

— u/thewearisomeMachine

12. Failed it: Dick Van Dyke

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"American actors will always go for an over-exaggerated Cockney accent, and Dick Van Dyke is still the worst example."

— u/berbiertbg

13. Nailed it: Angelina Jolie

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"Praising Angelina Jolie for her posh accent in Maleficent."

— u/Cookeina_92

14. Failed it: Anne Hathaway

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"It wasn't good but I always respected Anne Hathaway for attempting a Northern English accent in One Day."

— u/Special_Budget

15. Nailed it: Oscar Isaac

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"I actually really like Oscar Issac's Steven Grant accent in Moon Knight. Sometimes he over compensates but I think it actually works for the character."

— u/Dynamiccookie14

16. Failed it: Troian Bellisario

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"Troian Bellisario’s accent in Pretty Little Liars was pretty terrible." 

— u/SparkleWitch525

17. Nailed it: Robert Downey Jr.

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"Robert Downey Jr. in Sherlock Holmes. That man sounds like he’s lived here for all his life. I love that movie."

— u/NoLegsButIMustDance

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Are there any awful or awesome English accent performances you can think of? Let us know in the comments!