The sheriff calls us outlaws.
But I say we are free.
Unlike some other Robin Hoods,
I can speak with an English accent.
("God Save the Queen")
[Narrator] There are countless examples of American actors
who do terrible British accents.
I've seen many strange things already.
Mary Poppins, you look beautiful.
[Narrator] While most British actors appear
to have perfected their American accents.
Is that the going rate for saving the woman you love?
But, I'm gonna kill you.
[Narrator] So why do Americans have such a tough time?
I think part of it is an illusion.
I think part of it is just the fact that we actually hear
a lot more British actors doing American accents.
[Narrator] Erik Singer is a dialect coach
based in New York.
How many accents and dialects can I do?
All of them.
(laughs)
[Narrator] He works with actors to fine tune their accents
for film and TV.
I think we can probably think
of some accents from British actors in American accents
that are less successful.
I can't imagine a world without you.
There are guys you can hit.
And there's guys you can't.
The British actors who do really successful
American accents tend to live in the states
tend to come here and really be sort of be aiming
at the kind of success that, you know,
having a career in TV and film
that's produced in Hollywood represent.
The American actors who do really good British accents,
and there are plenty,
tend to be under the radar a little bit more.
You know they're doing theater in London
or something like that.
[Narrator] The type of training actors receive
can also come into play.
More British actors tend to have a drama school training
in which speech and accents and phonetics is part of it.
[Narrator] So what are some examples of Americans
who can do a good British accent?
I've heard some clips of Michael C. Hall
in the Netflix series "Safe" doing an English accent
that sounds really really really good.
I'm looking for Jenny, my daughter,
I think she was Chris last night, is she here?
Alan Tudyk does a great job, he's the robot in "Rogue One."
I'm a reprogrammed Imperial Droid.
[Narrator] On the flip side, Singer says
there are numerous British actors who have really nailed
their American accents.
Idris Elba's kind of African American accent in "The Wire."
You going out on point pickin' up business in the pit.
Ain't nothin' else to it.
Daniel Kaluuya did an amazing job, I think, in "Get Out."
Yo, my man, they were asking me about
the African American experience.
Maybe you can take this one.
Mark Rylance, his native accent is English.
He usually does a really great job in American accents.
Hello, I am James Halliday,
if you're watching this, I'm dead.
[Narrator] For those who have struggled
with accents in the past.
I need that money, Tom.
[Narrator] Singer has some tips
for actors looking to hone their skills.
Listen to a native speaker, listen a lot
and listen some more.
It's an act of the imagination taking on another accent
if you're not familiar with the culture, the place,
the people or you don't have a strong kind of sense
of empathetic identification
that's when it gets really hard.
Meryl Streep is famous for having done this a lot,
being surrounded by people who talk in the target accent.
1941, when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.
Meryl Streep doing Margaret Thatcher
which is a very specific, it's an idiolect,
it's one person's accent.
But, it's absolutely flawless.
[Narrator] When doing a British accent,
there are a few basic things to keep in mind.
Posture wise the tongue tips tend to be pointier
jaw tends to be a bit higher.
I would listen particularly for sounds like goat,
the o-sound where it's like hold, gold, hope.
I tend to use a bit more pitch,
tend to use pitch for emphasis
a bit more so that'll get you started.
[Narrator] There were many types of British accents.
And some tend to be more difficult than others.
One thing that comes up for some reason
is that a lot of Americans seem
to really struggle with is Welsh accents.
A lot of it is a lack of exposure.
It's like Welsh, what does that even sound like
for a lot of Americans?
Unless you've gone to see a production of "Under Milk Wood"
or something like that.
You probably haven't been exposed to lots of Welsh accents.
There's also one type of British accent
that actors tend to lean on.
One of the first things that you'll see American actors do
is kind of straighten up, yes, I've got to be like this.
And there's an association with the kind of fanciness.
Sometimes you'll see British actors kinda get soft
and floppy and lean back 'cause American are all like that.
Which is adding a particular character
and attitude on top of an accent.
And I think it's really important
not to rely on those sorts of things.
And to realize that people are people.
And character is to a large extent, independent of accent.
[Narrator] To perfect an American accent
you need to focus on one key letter.
A huge thing is getting American r-sounds.
And there's two things that can be challenging there.
One of them is just making sure they're all there.
And unstressed syllables like at the end of words
like other and another, mother, sister, brother,
you know, writer, baker.
We tend to skip right over those.
Carl! Carl!
American r's usually are made for most people
with the sides of the tongue kind of bunching up.
It's a really odd thing to do with your tongue.
And it can feel very awkward and clumsy
and it involves a lot of muscularity.
[Narrator] Regardless of your skills,
sometimes your true accent will pop up unexpectedly.
Getting very emotional, yelling,
also being tired or drunk,
these are times when accents do tend to slip.
I killed Bethany, my old girl friend with a nail gun.
[Narrator] So how long does it take to master an accent?
It just depends, it really does.
The more time the better.
If you have six weeks before shooting starts
or before rehearsals start for a play
and you work on it really really hard,
ideally with a really qualified dialect coach,
you stand a pretty good shot of getting to a good place.
Yes sir, I will give it my full attention.
Our work is finished here.
Hers has just begun.