h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I suppose another reason to cast British actors as the 'bad guys' is that they can actually act! Being a convincingly evil baddy requires subtlety not something American stars are good at

Perhaps it is also true that Americans like playing the Good Guy and win whatever it is they are after winning. We Brits, on the other hand, aren't bothered that much and like to play a good 'meaty' role, bad guy or not.

ooooh controversial.... i like it

I would agree with 'Who?' we aren't particularly bothered what we play,we're very compromisal I just enjoy acting but I don't mind what character I play but usually I end up being the villain.

I dunno, lots of American actors like to play bad guys...whatever the results.

I suspect it has more to do with Hollywood being at a loss for 'identifiably different' villains-there's more than a little consideration of PC matters involved in casting and 'writing around' the villains. (for years, I got the strong impression that street gangs were THE most integrated social units in the States-at least on TV. ALL gangs in TV shows were at least bi-racial, and often looked like some kind of Rainbow Coalition. Every one of them.)

That being the case, it's a small cop-out (by Hollywood standards, anyway) to make the bad guys identifiable, white, but still different. Oila! "Make the bad guy...ummm...British!"

Just a theory...