Countless actors have picked up a foreign accent for the duration of a film - Gwyneth Paltrow adopted a British accent for 'Shakespeare in Love', and Heath Ledger dropped his native Australian pronunciation to portray Americans in 'Brokeback Mountain,' 'Dark Knight,' etc. But what about recurring characters in TV shows and movies that require an actor to adopt a new voice for months or even years?

Actors like Hugh Laurie, Simon Baker, Anna Torv and Hugh Jackman spend hours of every day pretending to be someone they're not, with the added effort of giving those characters unnatural accents. Hats off. Here are the top ten convincing fake accents of actors from all over the globe.

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The Real Accents Behind Characters
American "mentalist" Patrick Jane works for the California Bureau of Investigation. Simon Baker, the actor who portrays him, speaks with an Australian accent in his personal life.
Dr. Billy Ingram, WireImage
Dr. Billy Ingram, WireImage

The Real Accents Behind Characters

    American bad boy Chuck Bass on 'Gossip Girl' is played by very British actor Ed Westwick of Stevenage, Hertfordshire.

    Dimitrios Kambouris, FilmMagic

    Dr. Greg "Curmudgeon" House speaks with a perfect American accent, but anyone who's seen actor Hugh Laurie in his historical sitcom 'Blackadder' can hear that he's an Oxford-born Englishman.

    Ray Tamarra, Getty Images

    American "mentalist" Patrick Jane works for the California Bureau of Investigation. Simon Baker, the actor who portrays him, speaks with an Australian accent in his personal life.

    Dr. Billy Ingram, WireImage

    That dry, American accent affected by FBI agent Olivia Dunham is a total fake. 'Fringe' star Anna Torv was born and raised in the Gold Coast of Australia.

    Jean Baptiste Lacroix, WireImage

    Robert Pattinson flaunted his real voice in the 'Harry Potter' movies, but he'll have to keep up his (slightly imperfect) American vampire accent for all four 'Twilight' films.

    Kevin Mazur, WireImage

    Barty Crouch, Jr. of 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' had a British accent, as did the Tenth Doctor of 'Doctor Who' - but David Tennant, who played them both, has a Scottish brogue in reality.

    Fred Duval, FilmMagic

    Dr. Owen Hunt on 'Grey's Anatomy' speaks with an American accent, but Kevin McKidd hides his natural Scottish tongue to accomplish it.

    Michael Tran, FilmMagic

    Actor Hugh Jackman suppresses his natural Australian accent every time he dons the Wolverine hair.

    Jewel Samad, AFP / Getty Images

    Another Aussie! Yvonne Strahovski of 'Chuck' puts on a very convincing American accent in her role as CIA agent Sarah Walker.

    Kevin Parry, WireImage

    Daniel Dae Kim was born in Korea, but Jin Kwon's accent on 'Lost' is a fake - Kim's family moved to Pennsylvania when the actor was only 2. Fans heard his real American accent when Kim was a recurring character on 'Angel.'

    Vera Anderson, WireImage