The British Actor Invasion

Why are British actors taking our roles? This is the question currently being debated in American acting circles. It has led to soul searching about our training, our aesthetic, our talent. One theater practitioner explains the phenomenon thus: British actors work harder, are more dedicated to their craft and get better training.

After spending 27 years of my life in Britain as a student and professional actor, I would like to weigh in. On both sides of the Atlantic individual actors can be lazy or hardworking. The training can be good, bad, long, short or non-existent. This is not the issue. British actors are landing roles in the US because they think and work differently.

American society is dominated by business in a way the UK is not. In the US, the business model seeps into culture, politics, health care, religion and education. Even our birth and childrearing techniques adopt the business mantra of efficiency. We like our rules. We cling to our tried and tested formulas. We place less value on creativity, eccentricity or being the odd one out. We want our presidents to be people like us. We like “regular” coffee and the “regular guy.”

In the UK, there is a different cultural expectation. As a nation, Brits are skeptical and anarchic. They will queue neatly until the cows come home, but they won’t be told what to do. They don’t pledge allegiance to a flag. They refuse to adopt the euro. They value originality over similarity. They like perverting ideas and they make art to comment on society. Not for business. Artistic expression is considered a fundamental right and part of their identity. It defines who they are.

No wonder this ideal trickles down to the training and craft of actors. British actors don’t work harder. They work differently. They’re not interested in what’s right or what’s regular. They value what’s fresh, what’s true to them, what’s original. They play.

So my advice to young American actors is: work hard, train well, continue to learn. But take a lesson from the Brits: think outside the box, take risks and be bold!