Celebrities are everywhere. You just can't escape them! Although Hollywood has the most visibility in the Western world, there are celebrity hubs all over (industries such as Nollywood and Bollywood are HUGE). Sometimes celebs born in different countries find their way to Hollywood where they are often mistaken for Americans. With America being one of the largest countries in the world, it's no wonder a lot of the household name celebrities are from there. From the Jacksons to the Kardashians - the world knows them! So it's not surprising when celebrities are thought to be born in America when they aren't.
From actors to musicians to supermodels, here is the list of the 15 celebrities that get mistaken for being born in the United States of America!
15 Naomi Campbell
Supermodel Naomi Campbell is one of the world's fiercest and most famous supermodels who still models to this day in her 40s. Born in London, England the worldwide star is easily mistaken for being American as she is constantly working in the US and has graced many fashion magazines over there. Fun fact: Naomi released an album in 1994 titled Baby Woman which was successful in Japan. Her other projects include TV and acting. She was an supermodel mentor and executive producer for The Face in the US, UK and Australia and has acted in Ugly Betty, Empire, American Horror Story and much more. In 2016 Campbell appeared in the music video for Anohni's single Drone Bomb Me and has been appearing in music videos as early as 1978 for Bob Marely's Is This Love.
14 Martin Lawrence
Born in Frankfurt, Germany, Actor and Comedian Martin Lawrence is easily mistaken as someone who was born in the USA. His parents were serving in the U.S. military in West Germany at the time of Martin's birth. He was named after Martin Luther King Jr.
From Bad Boys to Big Momma's House, Lawrence has featured on the big screens a whole lot. In 2011, Martin reprised his role as FBI agent Malcolm Turner in Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son for the third film in the Big Momma's House series after the first two doing well at the box office. In August 2014, Martin Lawrence confirmed, on Conan O'Brien, that the Bad Boys 3 movie is almost done being written. Fun fact: Martin owns a farm near Purcellville, Virginia.
13 Joss Stone
Joss Stone burst onto the music scene in the early 2000's with her soul album The Soul Sessions which gave her worldwide recognition. The success continued with her second album Mind Body & Soul earning her Grammy Award nominations and two BRIT Award wins. Stone was born in Kent in the UK and was always known for being British but started to confuse everyone when she appeared at the BRIT Awards in 2007 when asked to present an award. She appeared to have an American accent that had people questioning what was going on. The star had spent a lot of time in the States and had enjoyed a lot of success there but the public wondered if she was trying to forget her UK roots and appear American.
12 Kim Cattrall
Half British half Canadian star Kim Cattrall was in fact born in Liverpool in the UK. The successful actress has appeared in everyone's favourite films and still works to this day. One of her most iconic roles as Samantha Jones in Sex and the City is one of her career highlights. With her character being American it's no wonder everyone assumes she's from the States. Her part as Samantha Jones earned her five Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning the 2002 Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. She reprised the role in the films Sex and the City in 2008 and Sex and the City 2 in 2010. Staying loyal to her birth place, Kim is a supporter of the Liverpool F.C. football team.
11 Hugh Laurie
Hugh Laurie appeared on British television screens in the 1980s in a comedic partnership with fellow actor Stephen Fry in the Blackadder series. His career has gone from strength to strength since. In 2010 he was named one of the highest paid male actors working in television when starring in the hit show House. The medical drama had him make a transatlantic career switch which paid off. Playing an American character, Laurie is in fact from Oxford, Oxfordshire in England. He was listed in the 2011 Guinness World Records as the most watched leading man on television. Not bad huh? Laurie has also dipped his toes into music releasing two studio albums in 2011 and 2013 titled Let Them Talk and Didn't It Rain that consisted of Blues songs.
10 Orlando Bloom
His residence might be in Los Angeles but Orlando Bloom was born in Canterbury, Kent in the UK. The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean star burst onto the big screens in 2001. With many public relationships with American celebrities from Kate Bosworth to Katy Perry, he could easily be mistaken for an American too when flicking through magazines. Bloom made his professional stage debut in West End's In Celebration at the Duke of York's Theatre in London in 2007 and also starred in a Broadway adaption of Romeo and Juliet in 2013. In 2009, Orlando was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. In 2015 he received the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. With constant work around the world, it's easily to forget where these stars origin from.
9 Rihanna
Robyn Fenty who goes by her middle name Rihanna is one of the worlds biggest pop stars and celebrities since the 2000s. With endless hit singles and albums, she's truly worked hard to stay relevant in the world of music, fashion and celebrity. The Caribbean beauty is from Saint Michael, Barbados and is proud of her background since making it in the world of fame. Despite her accent, the Good Girl Gone Bad singer is confused for being an American. Forbes ranked Rihanna the fourth most powerful celebrity of 2012, and was named one of Time's "100 Most Influential People in the World" later that year. Riri has won eight Grammy Awards, twelve American Music Awards, twelve Billboard Music Awards and the honor of being given the inaugural Icon Award at the American Music Awards of 2013.
8 The Weeknd
Abel Tesfaye AKA The Weeknd was born in Toronto, Canada. The Starboy rose to fame in 2014 after he featured on Ariana Grande's hit single Love Me Harder. After releasing a successful run of mixtapes and a debut album, Abel got a taste of the commercial success after teaming up Ariana and had a slight career change. His first solo breakthrough hit Earned It for the Fifty Shades of Grey movie made him a household name. The hits continued with Can't Feel My Face, The Hills and In The Night which have made him a festival headliner all over the world. The Canadian star has won two Grammy Awards in the US and nine Juno Awards in his home country and his commercial success is only just getting started.
7 Mila Kunis
Mila Kunis might live her life as an American now but she was in fact born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine in the Soviet Union. When she was seven years old her family moved to Los Angeles. Kunis comes from a Jewish family and has cited antisemitism in the former Soviet Union as one of several reasons for her family's move to the United States. From Black Swan to Ted to Friends With Benefits, Mila has appeared in a lot of critically acclaimed movies. Black Swan gave her a lot of award recognition including her win for Premio Marcello Mastroianni for Best Young Actor or Actress, and nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role.
6 Natalie Portman
Born in Israel, Jerusalem, Natalie Portman is an actress that has duel citizenship that is Israeli and American. From the age of three she grew up in New York with her Israeli father and American mother. Portman has starred in three Star Wars movies and has won countless awards for her role in Black Swan. Her performance earned her first Academy Award for Best Actress, her second Golden Globe Award, the SAG Award, the BAFTA Award and the BFCA Award in 2011. In May 2008, Natalie was the youngest member of the 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival jury. The same year she directed a segment of the collective film New York, I Love You. Seven years later her first feature film as a director, A Tale of Love and Darkness, was released in 2015.
5 Ryan Gosling
Actor Ryan Gosling is one of Hollywood's biggest actors but that doesn't mean he's from that country. Born in Ontario, Canada, Gosling has now been acting for over 20 years. From starting out in The Mickey Mouse Club to being in huge big screen movies like The Notebook and La La Land, Ryan has earned himself some big awards. He won a Golden Globe Award and received a second Oscar nomination for his role as Sebastian Wilder in La La Land. Ryan has been nominated for a total of seven Teen Choice Awards and has won six of them for The Notebook. Gosling's has his own band, Dead Man's Bones who released their self-titled debut album in 2009 and toured across North America. Gosling performs under the alias "Baby Goose".
4 Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson in Baywatch is just ICONIC. The American drama series was a huge success when airing in the late 80s and is one of the most watched television shows in the world. Born in British Columbia, Canada, Anderson moved to Los Angeles to further pursue a modelling career. Anderson appeared as the cover girl on Playboy magazine's October 1989 issue. Pamela Anderson's Playboy career spans 22 years, and she has appeared on more Playboy covers than any other model. She has also starred in Raw Justice in 1994, Barb Wire in 1996 and Blonde and Blonder in 2008. Anderson was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame in 2006. Pamela is very vocal about standing up to animal rights and has done campaigns for PETA as she is against the use of fur in clothing.
3 Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis might live in LA now but he was born in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany in 1955. Willis' acting role models are Gary Cooper, Robert De Niro, Steve McQueen and John Wayne. Having appeared in 60 films including Pulp Fiction, Armageddon, The Sixth Sense, The Expendables 2, and Looper, Willis has received various honors and awards throughout his career. For his role in TV show Moonlighting, he won an Emmy and Golden Globe on 1986 and 1987. Maxim magazine ranked his sex scene in Color of Night the #1 sex scene in film history in 1994. In 2006 he was given the honor of having a Hollywood Walk of Fame star located at 6915 Hollywood Boulevard and it was the 2,321st star. He was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame five years later.
2 Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, impressionist, screenwriter, and producer. Born in Ontario, Canada, the man has one hell of a career! After gaining popularity after starring in In Living Color, his acting career started to really take off in the 90s. His iconic movies in the 1990's include: Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), Dumb and Dumber (1994), The Mask (1994), Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995), as well as a supporting role in Batman Forever (1995) and a lead role in Liar Liar (1997). In 1998 and 1999, he earned himself a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for films The Truman Show and Man on the Moon. Carrey received US citizenship in October 2004 and remains a dual citizen of the United States and his native Canada.
1 Nicki Minaj
Onika Tanya Maraj AKA Nicki Minaj is one of entertainments biggest female rappers. She was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago and grew up in Queens, New York. Breaking through with her debut album Pink Friday, the album shot straight to the number 1 spot on the US Billboard 200 album chart. With huge hits like Super Bass, Starships and Anaconda - Nicki has scored herself numerous top 10 singles. She has the most Billboard Hot 100 entries for a female artist in the chart's history, while being ninth overall. Minaj has received ten Grammy nominations throughout her career, and has won six American Music Awards, eleven BET Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, four Billboard Music Awards, and was the recipient of Billboard's Women in Music 2011 Rising Star award.