They have accents?

Wait, What Accents?

There are a shocking number of foreign actors and actresses who appear on American television using American accents.


Often we know who these people are, but occasionally it's shocking.


For instance, did you know that Kevin McKidd (who plays Owen on "Grey's Anatomy") is Scottish? Well, I had no idea...until I saw him being interviewed for the "Greys" musical episode.



Marianne Jean-Baptiste, who played Vivian Johnson on "Without a Trace" for 8 seasons, is also British. I discovered that (with a great deal of shock) when I watched the special features on the series DVD.







Oh, and lets not forget "House". Hugh Laurie is also a Brit. But they're not the only ones invading.

"Without a Trace" barely qualifies as an American television show. Poppy Montgomery and Anthony LaPaglia, the shows other two leads, are both Australian. But you wouldn't know it.






"Fringe", currently airing on Fox, has an Australian lead (Anna Torv), and so does "The Mentalist" (Simon Baker).





And, Portia de Rossi, who I've previously mentioned for her roles on "Ally McBeal", "Arrested Development", and "Nip/Tuck", is yet another Australian.







Here are the following shows that have foreign actors playing American leads different television stations:
1) "Fringe" and "House" on Fox
2) "The Mentalist" on CBS
3) "Grey's Anatomy" on ABC
So, that's the two out of the Big Three plus the 'newcomer' network!

I guess I really can't complain about an Australian/British invasion on "our" television. After all, I have British citizenship too, and I'm not planning on moving out of the U.S. anytime soon.

Check out this fun story about foreigners playing Americans that was first heard on NPR in 2008.