Alexis Denisof is talking about Wesley

[nicholasjonasluver16]

First Spike now Wesley was Giles the only real British guy? Were the people in the council all American too?

[CheaIncx]

rip wes and fred. thanks for emotionally scarring me.

[jackdavenportsbaby11]

He's not really a Brit?

Mind. Blown.

[cduck88]

Definitely the best American doing a British accent on Buffy, James Masters' Spike is just awful at first but does improve as the series goes on, but I think you can always tell it's a bit off, Juliet Landau's Drusilla cockney thing is terrible. And whatever accent it was that SMG was trying to do in the Halloween episode well...the less said the better.

[Versidious]

Denishoff grew up half in the US, half in the UK, his natural accent, as you can here, is kind of somewhere between the two. He's been on British TV doing a British accent as well, in Sharpe, and I think he puts both accents on to a certain degree!

[MakeupMiraclesOnline]

So one time I was watching him on How I Met Your Mother where he just has an American accent and I thought it was fake. Lol. I could have sworn I heard some British accent leaking through but it must've been my imagination. Unless he did adopt a slight accent just from living there for so long. either way the British accent fits his face better. Lol.

[MakeupMiraclesOnline]

@thefoxfan he was born in Maryland.

[TheFoxFan]

His accent was flawless I had no idea he was American. And I'm a Brit lol. But that means he was doing his job properly right? His accent is a bit of a mess now half Brit half American lol where's he from in the states?

[littleaprilroses]

You poor British people, lol. Every British person I've ever met has prided themselves on knowing real British accents from fake ones. I assume other British people like to think the same to a certain degree, so it must have been a blow to the ego's when ya'll learned that neither Alexis or James were actually British, LOL! On your behalf, they were amazingly convincing. Trust me, I know. I watched pretty much only BBC programing for almost a year and a half. =P So... many... kissing... men!! =D

[SimmosFace]

WESLEY WESLEY WESLEY WELSEY WESLEY WESLEY WESLEY WELSEY!!!!!!

[chickenfingalickin]

@lebbo88 He lived in England when he was younger; that's how he has such a nice accent

[Jackalskittles]

My mouth just dropped... Oh my lord he's American...

[wiiarefam]

When I watched him in Buffy, I (as an Brit) genuinely thought he was british. I think his accent slipped a bit more in Angel, but that's just because of more screentime.

@Granty2k8 You can't really tell anything from that, as they made Antony Head change some words and pronunciations to ones that US audiences could understand.

[Fatpandas2014]

why is he speaking with an american accent :o

jk.. i know he's american, just so strange to hear him without that accent

[mrslovedavidboreanaz]

since he lived in britain for a few years, hes got a bit of a british accent when he talks normally. but i like him better with a british accent :D <3

[CArrigoProductions]

.....he's not English?

[abcgurlieluvs]

i like james marsters american accent, but i think i like alexis better as a brit

[Itub3Com]

his voice is totally different!!! lol i thought he was british too just like james marsters

[LieutKusa]

@Itub3Com James Marsters is NOT British either. He does not have a British accent, just the standard American accent.

[BTTFMovie]

it is SO weird hearing him talk like that. it almost makes me think he's faking this accent.

[AdamBauer85]

I've thought he was english for years since he was also in Sharpe when he played Lord Rosindale.

[narcissa912]

He and James Marsters fooled me! I thought for years that they were both British! You bastards XD

[PatriciaTuugamusu]

Dang....he and James Marsters played their part really well. they both fooled me with their accents.

[TQ255]

Holy shit, my speakers went boom!

[xelibergx]

I thought he was British. Dude, I thought he was freakin' BRITISH!

[GrinningSoul24]

the way he actually talks is so sexy. I've never heard him talk other than as Wesley from Angel. It's also odd b/c I never really liked Wesley but he grew on me and now I think he's extremely hot ; ) <3

[CaptainJack0099]

WOW OMFG His Accent Is is jusst Wow he plays wesleys English Accent Soo well Omg his accent is Amzingly HOT

[AdDonald9]

He is very talented, unfortunately, very under rated, classy and gracious. About the accent: is he British or something else? Or has he been living here so long, he is used to an American accent? If anyone knows, please pass the information along.

[alison528]

@AdDonald9 He's not British. He was raised in Maryland. He just does Britspeak very well, like James Marsters.

[InThereTriumphDie]

@AdDonald9 Hes American but lived in London for 13 years.

[xhannahxonealx]

@AdDonald9 He lived in England for like 16 years I think. Check out his bio at IMDb :)

[zacharyljkja]

He was the fight director for a stage production of Hamlet, and in 1991 he was the fight director of The Other Side for the BBC, Romeo and Juliet, and The Soul's Dark Night

[missclaritystar]

wow no accent

[omgalreadyinuse]

Its like everyone on buffy and angel are americans playing british people

[1999phoebe]

I <3 Alexis!!!!

[Sforschondetta]

one of the biggest character developments ever in tv history

[dudedudeneo]

In American tv shows they always stroie type the English as being really posh most English people just hav a lot softer versions ;p

[alison528]

@dudedudeneo Just curious what you think about James Marsters (Spike's;Captain John's) Cockney accent?

[lysjocksan]

Hm I had never watched an interview by Alexis before. I had only ever seen him in Angel, but I'm watching season 3 episode 9 right now and, for the first time, I questioned his accent. I really thought he was British! But while watching this episode, I began to suspect that maybe he wasn't. After all, look at James Marster. Spike sexier with his accent :( Anyway, if you watch season 3 episode 9, I have heard two instances where it sounds like Alexis abandoned his accent completely!

[barbraherdegen07]

attractive man and talanted

[roarkkariyama]

He's of russian descent

[gshunw]

That's why I'm here. I just found out he is American and I wanted to hear his accent.

[tripleJ1955]

Good video, but why are you trying to blow up people's speakers? Do something about the volume.

[lucymn1]

He des the wrost english accent iv ever heard . he's fit tho ;)

[Crimmyboy]

@lucymn1 Uh, he did the accent well. And most people agree.

[lucymn1]

@Crimmyboy It isnt an english accent; just a really sterio-typical posh one :/

[Whippy99]

Why isn't he a top Oscar-winning actor?! His performance as Wesley was the best of both Buffy and Angel. He developed the character skilfully and with total commitment. A sublime actor who is maddeningly overlooked.

[JeneeGolightly]

@Whippy99 I think he like the girl that plays Drusilla and the guy that plays Spike are more into stage theatre and that's mostly what they do (Although James M does more tv & movie then the other 2). The 3 of them were trained for stage acting and the guy that plays Wesley is trained especially for Shakespeare so my guess is that he has most of his work on stage and that's why he hasn't been seen much after

[kate128346]

I CANNOT believe this guy is actually american... I'm totally fucking shocked here!! Ha wow! ... but he did live in England for "some time" must have been some years as his accent is fucking weird

[Yatsuan]

Everyone's always going on about how James Marsters has such a good English accent... um, HELLO! Look at Alexis Denisof! His is practically flawless, I was really shocked when I discovered he's actually American.

[Heffey22547]

@Yatsuan They are both great. Notice that they have different dialects. Both British, but from different regions. I wonder what dialects they are emulating.

[0BALLINN0]

Wesley married Willow and had a baby

weird

[Franocho69]

Lol the comments in this thread, I looked this video up for the exact same reason, his accent is so damn good I assumed he was English.

You're blowing my mind, Alexis.

[danrdrewf]

This is so weird...I would have sworn on my life that he was British...and then I looked him up and I saw that he was American.

[lebbo88]

I honestly thought he was British. His accent on Angel was so convincing.

[BTTFMovie]

well, his wife (who played WIllow by the way) said that he lived in england for most of his life, and they go there for vacations all the time.

[queenastilon]

Not quite most of his life, BTTFMovie; Alexis moved here to go to Drama School (LAMDA) at the age of 18. He stayed 13 years, working here, so that's a big chunk of his life.

The story goes he went to the US on a long trip getting over a bad break-up (Caroline Aherne, comedienne) and looked up old friends. Tony Head said "Hey, there's 2 weeks work on this Buffy show I'm in, if you want to try for it." He slept on Ted Dansig's couch for months before deciding to move back to the US.

[BTTFMovie]

oh. I didn't know that

[lucymn1]

@lebbo88 No it int? He sounds posh

[FranBMan]

@lebbo88 As a bonafide Brit, I can confirm his accent was near perfect. So refreshing when you hear some of the awful attempts at English accents on US telly.

[Heffey22547]

@FranBMan Not to mention the horrendous accent Dick Van Dyke did in Mary Poppins. And I have no idea why no one spoke up when Keanu Reeves tried to do British in Dracula.

[gshineman]

@lebbo88 True My Good amn,...

[madatia]

@lebbo88 he and James AKA Spike had amazing fake british accents I was impressed!

[LunazxTerra]

@madatia and juliet landau

[carameltoff]

@lebbo88 Haha are you british? Because it really wasn't :-) he mispronounced all the words that an American would do whilst doing an English accent. Such as 'data' 'lever' 'details' 'anti' and many more :-) I really gave the game away, but didn't stop him being amazing as Wesley!

[Ninesvnsicks]

@lebbo88 lol so did I wtf.

[lsdarcy]

from 2.17-2.20 he goes from english to american. He sounds english but then finishes on "...Connor" with an american accent. WTF!! Im sorry, but PICK A FU**ING ACCENT!!

[lsdarcy]

this guy is fucking weird Ive heard him do interviews in an english accent. WHERE IS HE FROM? is he american or english? AAAARRTGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

[MagDuke]

It's not hard to figure out. Particularily when one visits or lives in another country for some time. I've heard Gillian Anderson with a touch of a British accent after being there for a while.

[lsdarcy]

yea true, kinda like Lennox Lewis.

[Heffey22547]

@lsdarcy American, though he lived in England for some time, so he may have picked up the accent a little. I was born in FL, but have lived in WV for 14 years, and I have picked up a slight southern acccent.

[LoveLittleMissMunich]

Holy s**t, this is crazy. Wesley is my favorite fictional character EVER, and I've never heard Alexis Denisof's real accent until now. This is blowing my mind. I can't even focus on what he's saying.

[Heffey22547]

@LoveLittleMissMunich Yeah, it's really throwing me off, too. I always thought he and James Marsters were British. They both do the accents perfectly, it's a wonder they don't get more work.

[alison528]

@Heffey22547 At least James had work as Brainiac in Smallville, a minor character in P. S. I love you, and as Victor Hess in Hawaii Five 0 (2010 series) and also Barnabas Greeley in Caprica, so he's doing some high profile parts. And let's not forget Captain John Hart in Torchwood.

[vfdj42]

This is my first time hearing his real voice, it's really throwing me off.

[charliehamill1]

hearing his real voice confuses me sooo much

[jay5354369]

when he was in london he had such a strong english accent! I think being back in the states hes picked up his natural accent!

[kxhtc]

oh my god, i am so attracted to that man :')

i adore his real accent ^__^

[Gambit771]

He sounds so different when using his natural accent.

In fact I'm so used to hearing his English accent (which by the way is far better and realistic than the vast majority of fake English accents on us tv and film) his real accent sounds fake to me.

[queenastilon]

After around 13 years here, he said he had to relearn his American accent.

After finishing in Buffy, before starting in Angel, he came here and did one ep of an English series, playing an American... and the ends of most words sounded too "British" even to my English ears.

(Denisof in Randall & Hopkirk)

[Gambit771]

After listening to the clip again I too noticed how the ends of some words sounded English

[1993MovieMan]

Dude,I think that it`s not that his real accent sounds fake so much as the quality is screwed up.

[Gambit771]

To my ear it does. I think it's simply because his English accent is so good and I'm used to that.

Watching him on Randall and Hopkirk on the Beeb he sounded as in this clip.

[slitheen]

Just a heads up for you Americans, he hardly sounds English when he's acting either. That 'Queen's English' American TV and movie making folk like to make their actors use is something largley from a bygone era. I sometimes get the impression you all think we go around talking like David Niven (actor), when you'll find most of us speak with a regional dialect that is something very different. Wes sounds like royalty...or at least an upper class twit of the 1930's. Now Spike's accent is great!

[queenastilon]

I disagree; first thought Alexis Denisof was English, NEVER thought James Marsters was. AD was told to do upper class twit in BtVS to make Giles seem cool. AD never slipped up the way JM did as Spike, who in every scene made me wince: wrong vowels, and (dead giveaway) an American dark L. JM is a very good actor (maybe not as good as he thinks). Even Tony Head made mistakes that AD didnt (TH really speaks like Ripper in Band Candy). Only spotted one error from AD and its debatable.

[amandaonzeteo]

If you don't mind me asking, what's the one debatable error? You have me curious.

[queenastilon]

amandaonzeteo, I remember thinking I wonder if anyone will ask that LOL.

It was in the episode She, from Angel, just as Angel realises Wesley is broke and Wes says "Angel! A man's finances!" (because it's considered rude to talk about money, and traditionally "we" English think Yanks are too up front about it).

He pronounced "finances" as FINN-ances. Some still say FINN-ancial here but no one says FINN-ances.

[Jess046]

Well, I think he's meant to sound like an upperclass twit...after all, it's Wesley...Which is ironic considering Spike was actually alive in the 1930s.

[queenastilon]

Yes, he was meant to sound like that; that was my point.

I've heard others say no one in England speaks like that anymore but there ARE some that do in the ruling classes.

The only thing I ever thought sounded fake out of Wesley's mouth was one word he pronounced in such a very old-fashioned way, that I really don't think anybody at all says anymore.

[lacrymosa0208]

He sounds less... English here.

[ksb78]

Well, thats because he's not really English. He has a slight accent because he lived in England for some years a long time ago.

[lacrymosa0208]

Oh really? I didn't know that. I thought that since he had family in England he'd be from there.

[ksb78]

Well he was born and raised in Seattle, but lived and worked in London as an adult for some years. His family is in Seattle. I think his slight accent is cute.

[lacrymosa0208]

Oh okay. Gotcha.

[WhyDoUNeedSmack]

He's Sexy

[AngelLika13]

indeed))

[queenastilon]

Ohgodyes, he's sexy. See his first acting job, 1987, in George Harrisons vid of Got My Mind Set On You (search 'denisof set on you' here on YT).