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FOARP -> RE: The walking dead. (4/8/2013 8:37:21 AM)
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Shout out to Renee Zellweger and the entirety of Spinal Tap as Americans who managed to pull off British accents which were practically flawless.
Why does the Walking Dead have so many British actors? My guess is it comes down to the need for specific regional US accents which they are unlikely to find native speakers of in sufficient numbers. British people grow up hearing lots of different accents - there were at least four different accents to be found within 40 miles of where I grew up in the west of Lancashire (Welsh, Scouse, Mancunian, Lancastrian) - and are often natural mimics as a result. Most people in the US don't get this kind of exposure early on and so find different accents harder to deal with - observe the Americans who needed subtitles to watch Train Spotting.
British actors in general have become more popular for use in US TV programs because:
1) More TV shows and movies having scenarios requiring British-accented characters. GoT, with it's medieval-esque scenario, pretty much requires most of the actors to speak with a British accent to be credible (PS - as much as I love his portrayal of Tyrion Lannister, Peter Dinklage's British accent is lamentable).
2) Their familiarity with other accents.
3) (Sorry to say this) Their rather less prima donna-ish attitude to their work that comes as a result of not having been in the Hollywood system from an early age. Most British actors get their break via small roles in television during their 20's, not, as often seems to be the case with American actors, in their teen-aged years or earlier.
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