Millie Bobby Brown Explains Why She Changes Accents So Often
"What I hear is what I do."
Although Millie Bobby Brown has had to put on an American accent for years for her most famous role as Eleven in Stranger Things, the British actor naturally speaks much differently than her telekinetic character. Well, sometimes, that is. In recent years, fans have pointed out how Brown will often speak in an American accent even in her everyday life. It’s caused a fascination with Brown’s inflection, which will be British at times, and American at others. And the actor is so over people not understanding why her speech pattern is a normal reflection of her unique situation.
"That was such a huge thing for a minute," Brown said during her March 10 appearance on the SmartLess podcast. "I actually call it the ‘AccentGate’ because it's so frustrating because that was everywhere. Like for a second, everyone was talking about my accent, and they had a real problem about it. And I was like, 'Guys, I'm married to an American.'"
Brown got married to Jake Bongiovi, son of New Jersey rocker Jon Bon Jovi, in 2024. The British star was raised in Bournemouth, England before moving to Orlando, Florida when she was eight years old.
"When I'm around [Jake’s] family, I immediately go into, like, an American accent," Brown explained. "But then I was just in England, and then the second I hear my mom and dad's accent, I just go right back."
She added that her training as an actor has influenced how she changes up her speech pattern depending on whatever environment she’s in. “You want me to play these characters, but you expect me not to morph into people,” Brown said. “What I hear is what I do. It's all part of it.”
Brown previously addressed the chatter about her changing accent in a March 2024 TikTok. “I'm an actor. I grew up in the public eye. I grew up in America,” she said. “I come to set and I'm an actor and I adapt. And so I want to mimic people. I can’t help that when I’m around my fiancé or when I’m around people like Jimmy Fallon, who have a very American accent, I want to replicate it. And now I’m in England; I want to replicate that. I don’t do it intentionally. I’m sorry if it offends you!”
