Sarah Silverman learns to speak Canadian

Sarah Silverman had to learn to speak "Canadian" for her role in Sarah Polley's Take This Waltz. Polley told an audience at Sunday's screening that she hired a dialogue coach who normally helps Canadian actors learn American accents to help Silverman adapt a Canadian one for her role as the alcoholic sister-in-law of Michelle Williams' character.

Sarah Silverman and Seth Rogen at the Take This Waltz press conference/REUTERS/Mike Cassese

Silverman threw in a "Tronna" later in the Q&A to show what she'd learned. Asked about how she transitioned from her usual comedic pursuits to a dramatic role, Silverman said, "this is a movie about people that are funny. Also, I'm capable of just saying words."

 

Sarah Silverman at the Take This Waltz press conference. REUTERS/Mike Cassese

Seth Rogen, who played Williams' husband, added "Me too." Rogen got funny later when he said he was pleasantly surprised by Toronto during the filming, but "when you're from Vancouver you're kind of told Toronto sucks your whole life" so he'd deny saying nice things about Toronto back in Vancouver. Silverman said Toronto is "like a city but clean" and she hitchhiked here a couple of times when she couldn't find taxis. "I just hung out at a light and tried to see a safe-looking person."

-Debra Yeo

Comments

[Edward]

two worthless meatbags. Waste of space, bandwidth, time, etc. Not funny, not entertaining...Shylocks laughing all the way to the bank.

[JR]

It's funny because, to be honest, despite recognizing that Canadians have a handful of special terms and phrases, I didn't think that Canadian English was that distinctively different that an American would require a dialogue coach. What do others think?

[Lemon]

As an actor who has auditioned for American film I can say there is a difference in our vowel sounds...mind you, all accents are regional and cultural so it depends on where you're from and how your family talks. If you don't believe me, try comparing iconic American voices with Canadian ones....Tom Brokaw and Peter Mansbridge....Jon Stewart and Rick Mercer...Katie Couric and Lisa Laflamme...Larry King and Lloyd Robertson. They sound nothing alike.