by Aaron Smith
Is it safe to say that plenty of actors – especially the US-born ones – butcher the Aussie accent? While it’s not so far removed from the British accent, and indeed some of these actors can really nail it, it’s the Americans that seem to struggle. While you could try and get an Australian accent coach, you really do need to put in the hours and not everyone gets it…
Mastering an Aussie accent – no matter how good an actor is – is certainly no easy feat! Not only do they need to understand the specific nuances and intonations, they also need to get accustomed to typical colloquialisms. Quite a big ask! Now whether you’re native to down under or simply love the sound of Australian English, no doubt you’ll appreciate this great accent. You probably find every excuse possible to listen to the local inflections, right? Let’s take a wild guess, even if you’re playing at an Australian no deposit casino, you filter out your game preferences based on your love of anything reminiscent of the outback.
Let’s see who’s good and bad at this tricky accent.
1. Bad: Robert Downey Junior
Robert Downey Junior’s turn in Natural Born Killers was enough to make your stomach turn. By non-Aussies, his accent was so laughable that he even detracted from the killer vibes of the movie. It was only his blackface getup and associated accent in Tropic Thunder that was more cringe – and that was deliberate, as his character was an unlikeable actor who thought it was okay to do. It was yet another time RDJ managed to butcher an Australian accent as his character was supposed to be Australian, playing an African American.
2. Bad: Jude Law
Jude Law usually plays the affable British chap because, well, that’s who he sort of is in real life (despite his indiscretions with the nanny). However it was his choice to play Alan Krumwiede in the 2011 flick, Contagion, that had audiences scratching their heads. While he’s supposed to come off sounding like he’s from Melbourne he just does not.
3. Bad: Quentin Tarantino
Quentin is most well known for being a man behind the camera. And while he’s been absolutely fantastic in some movies, such as his creepy presence as Richard Gecko in From Dusk Till Dawn, in others he hasn’t been so great in some ways. Case in point: his rubbish Australian accent in Django Unchained. While the movie itself has people on both sides of the fence in whether it’s bad or good, there‘s one thing that everyone can agree on: his Australian accent kinda sucked!
4. Bad: Jennifer Saunders
You would think that British quasi-royalty like Jennifer Saunders may be the candidate for a good Aussie accent, but you’d think wrong. In the Netflix romcom, Isn’t It Romantic, featuring Aussies Rebel Wilson and Liam Hemsworth, she just cannot step up to the plate properly.
5. Bad: Half the cast on The Good Place
The Good Place is actually a very good show, with a great sci-fi-esque concept and an all-star line-up of actors, including Kristin Bell, William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil, and Ted Danson. However, on the release of season three of the show, the internet – and particularly Aussies – were up in arms about just how bad the cast were butchering the Aussie accent. Take a watch and see for yourself.
6. Good: Dev Patel
Can Dev Patel do no wrong? The man has gone from strength to strength in his long acting career, and of late has been kicking goals in physical transformation, too. You know what else he can successfully transform? His accent. If you’re looking for an excellent Aussie accent from a non-Aussie, check out his work in Lion. He is receiving accolades allllll around for it.
7. Good: Liev Schreiber
Liev Schreiber may have faded from the spotlight a little recently, but there’s one thing that hasn’t faded from our memories and that’s his spot-on accent in Mental. Back in 2012, Liev played Trevor in this movie, alongside Aussie greats like Tonie Collette (as the quintessential Australian, Shaz), Anthony LaPaglia, and Rebecca Gibney. The fact that Liev could hold his own with a cast of full Aussies says more than words can about his skills. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that one Ms. Naomi Watts was his wife. The perfect practice for an accent is immersion, after all.
8. Good: Kate Winslet
Kate’s been gracing our screens with her knockout acting talent for over 30 years now, even winning the Best Actress in a Leading Role Oscar for her 2008 hit The Reader. But it’s in her time as Myrtle ‘Tilly’ Dunnage in The Dressmaker that left audiences stunned by the accuracy of her Aussie accent. Not only is it a fun representation of outback Australiana, Kate knocks socks off alongside a full Australian cast. Kudos.
9. Good: Saoirse Ronan
While Saoirse Ronan doesn’t have an actual Australian accent credit to her name – yet – this actress of Irish heritage is well known for her conquering of tricky accents. When challenged to do an Australian by none other Margot Robbie herself on the Jimmy Fallon show, Saoirse not only broke out her best Aussie twang but her Kiwi accent alongside, too. They were both so spot on that we’re hoping for a full length feature soon!
10. Good: Daniel Radcliffe
Fresh out of Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe signed on to December Boys, an Australian coming-of-age flick. For such a young talent (at the time), Radcliffe manages to pull off a pretty convincing Aussie accent. While the film may have gotten buried, it’s definitely worth a watch.
Bonus: Aussie with the best Aussie accent – Nicole Kidman
Yes, yes, we know that Nicole Kidman is actually an Australian herself. However the woman has lived so long overseas it’s not like the Aussies can reeeeally claim her anymore. Despite this, if you listen to her when she is playing an Australian (pictured in Top of the Lake: China Girl) you’ll hear her beautiful accent. It’s what you call a neutral Australian accent (as opposed to a bogan accent which you might be a little more familiar with!).
