Between the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Extended Universe, fans have plenty of amazing superhero movies to enjoy. But despite their American origins, some of the biggest comic book adaptations feature English actors in the lead roles. Here are seven iconic American superheroes currently being portrayed by British actors.
1. Henry Cavill as Superman
After being sent to Earth by spaceship from his home planet of Krypton as a baby, Clark Kent was raised on a farm in a fictional small American town called Smallville. In the comics, he grows up to become Superman, but he continues to live his double life as a journalist in the fictional big American city of Metropolis.
But in the 2013 movie, Iron Man, and its sequels as a whole, Batman V Superman Dawn of Justice and League of JusticeBritish actor Henry Cavill takes on the role of the superhero. American actors Christopher Reeves and Brandon Routh played Superman in previous film iterations, but Cavill’s version has been recognized as one of the best.
RELATED: Henry Cavill reveals his favorite ‘Man of Steel’ moment
2. Robert Pattinson as Batman
Most fans know that Bruce Wayne was born and raised in the fictional American city of Gotham. But in the next movie, The batmanBritish actor Robert Pattinson is taking on the role of the caped crusader.
Another British actor, Christian Bale, played Batman in the Christopher Nolan film series. And he is often credited with bringing a level of darkness to the character that had never been seen before.
RELATED: Robert Pattinson’s ‘The Batman’ is getting a spin-off series on HBO Max
3. Tom Holland as Spider-Man
In the Marvel comics, Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man, is as American as apple pie. But in the current Sony / MCU Spiderman movies, English actor Tom Holland is tackling the role of superhero.
Spider-Man was previously portrayed by another Briton, Andrew Garfield, and by American actor Toby McGuire before that. But Holland’s version is considered one of the best by far.
4. Sophie Turner as Pheonix
In the Marvel X-Men comics, Jean Gray, also known as Phoenix, was born and raised in upstate New York. But in the last two X-Men movies: X-Men: Apocalypse and Dark fenix – British actor Sophie Turner took on the role of the mutant superhero. Previously, the part of Jean Gray was played by the Dutch actor Famke Janssen.
5. Tom Hardy as Venom / Eddie Brock
In the Marvel comics, Eddie Brock is an American journalist who grew up in San Francisco. But in the 2018 movie Poison and its next sequel, Poison: Let There Be SlaughterLondon-born actor Tom Hardy takes on the role.
While most fans fell in love with Hardy’s version of the Marvel character, others criticized his inconsistent and significantly inaccurate New York accent.
6. Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange
At the MCU, New York City surgeon-turned-superhero Dr. Stephen Strange is played by Benedict Cumberbatch. The British Academy Award nominated actor presented his version of the character in the 2016 film, Strange doctor. And she repeated the role in Avengers: Infinity War and Avenger: Endgame.
7. Nicholas Hoult as Beast
In the last four X Men In the movies, British actor Nicholas Hoult played Hank McCoy, also known as the Beast, a character who was born and raised in the small town of Illinois. He appeared as Hank in X Men First generation, X-Men: Apocalypseand the 2019 movie Dark fenix.
