Are British actors better than American actors? Read this guest post full of US/UK cultural observations from a casting professional and judge for yourself!

OK, so maybe it isn’t a casting couch in the true sense of the phrase, but those British actors may as well be sleeping with the casting directors! The way those Brits just waltz into the casting office like they own the place, confident and unruffled, only to throw you off-guard with their completely self-deprecating manner & humor, only to AGAIN, show off with their insultingly charming accents, and then, finally (just when you think there’s no way they will land this “American guy who went to law school” part), they break into a character so deliciously flawed yet preppy with no hint of a British accent, that you just give up.

How on Earth could any American actor compete with that? Just like no self-respecting actress could compete with a woman who has no shame in sleeping her way to the top, these British actors are flagrantly stealing all the great parts simply because they are who they are.

Pity.

Of course, I jest. However, having worked in the casting world for nearly five years, I can attest to the fact that the casting directors are powerless to the wiles and charms of the British actor. As much as a casting director may try to ward off the persuasive mastery of the accent, the smiles, the “realness” of a Brit, it’s simply impossible.

It was our casting office that made James McAvoy the hero that he was in the film Wanted. Although I never personally met the guy, when I watched back his audition tapes, it was like watching a watchmaker put together a 1,000 year old watch – he was skilled, subtle, daring and yet precise.

Of course, it’s not just the accents that capture a casting director’s attention. British actors aren’t even necessarily better trained – in fact, their acting style mostly comes from Stanislavski, Strasberg (and the Group Theater)- two of acting’s finest teachers who taught in America.

I believe that it has more to do with the culture. I know this sounds odd – how can a culture create a better actor? But I believe it can.

In America, we are taught to please others – my British boyfriend calls me a PP – a people pleaser. We are also taught that large, outward signs of emotion show that you care, that you are a personable, fun, and involved. The prettiest and most athletic kids in our schools are praised, fawned upon and applauded from a very early age, which leads to a lack of humility, a sense of entitlement and a certain detachment from reality (it also leads to some of the best athletes in the world, but that’s beside the point).

In Great Britain, (in some areas more than others), children are taught to behave, that they are no better or worse than the next kid, and that grandiose emotions and outward signs of gratitude are over-the-top or quite simply, ridiculous. In Britain and Ireland, kids are not praised for being better looking than the next kid, and it is often these attractive kids that are made fun for being a “pretty boy” or whatever the opposite would be for a woman. They don’t hold anyone up on a pedestal, especially not just based on their looks.

I also believe that the idea that you can never aspire to be a King or Queen can be quite humbling. Here, we have kids who might think nothing of saying that they want to be the President of the United States (the highest honor that our country has), whereas in Great Britain, this will never be possible – a kick in the nuts to one’s ego, perhaps?

Most actors that become highly sought after are the beautiful ones – it’s the name of the game. As a good-looking American actor (usually the best looking person from their small town), one has to battle through all of society’s garbage and bullshit described above in order to become the raw, subtle, humble and emotionally available (not in the fake “Oh my God” way that we’re used to) person that the best actors’ embody.

All of this comes quite naturally to the Brit. Although they aren’t outwardly as emotional as an American, I bet you that they actually feel more. The camera picks up on these understated emotions, and for the audience, the less obvious choices tend to be the more interesting.  Not only that, (and this is extremely generalized), the prettiest Brits automatically assume they’re shit, rather than assuming the other way around. They know who they are at a much younger age because they don’t constantly need the approval of others to move forward with their lives. Without those constant compliments & feedback that their American counterparts are suffocated with, they are free to be who they want to be.

What do you think? Are British actors better than most American actors?

Former actress turned casting lady turned lady who lunches writer, Meagan Adele Lopez just finished her first novel, “Three Questions”. She dates a British bloke named Jock, and lived in England for a couple of years. They now reside in Chicago. Lopez is also in the midst of running a nerve-wracking Kickstarter campaign, and would love your contributions! You will get some great rewards, and be a part of a very cool project.