Arnold Schwarzenegger Playfully Demands a Refund from His Accent Coach

Arnold Schwarzenegger Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for The Wall Street Journal

Years before Arnold Schwarzenegger recognized the value of his accent in his acting career, he made efforts to distance himself from his Austrian roots. During an appearance on The Graham Norton Show, Schwarzenegger, now 76, shared that he had employed an English coach, an acting coach, a speech coach, and even an accent-removal coach, who has since passed away. Despite these efforts, Schwarzenegger still retains his distinct Austrian accent to this day.

Schwarzenegger clarified that his ultimate goal was to eliminate the habit of pronouncing "three" as "s-ree."

According to the Terminator actor, he vividly recalls how he would insist on saying "s-ree," while Schwarzenegger would correct him, stressing the correct pronunciation as "three" with a T-H. In a lighthearted manner, the actor shared that it took him a considerable amount of time, jokingly referred to as "5,000 years," to finally grasp the correct way of saying "Three thousand three hundred and thirty-three and one-third" with the T-H sound instead of the S.

Schwarzenegger remembered being told by "Hollywood producers and directors" that his accent was a hindrance, but he ultimately achieved success through iconic roles such as Conan the Barbarian and Terminator.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, while on the set of “Terminator”, impressed director John Milius with his portrayal of Conan the Barbarian. Milius publicly praised Schwarzenegger, recognizing him as the only actor who possessed the necessary muscles to embody the character.

James Cameron also attributed the triumph of the initial Terminator, released in 1984, to Schwarzenegger's accent, which in turn spawned the film series.

Despite eventually immigrating to the United States, Schwarzenegger's upbringing in Austria accounts for his accent. Following his marriage to Maria Shriver in 1986 and the beginning of their family, he embraced a parenting style that was both reminiscent of and distinct from his own childhood experiences.

Schwarzenegger revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! earlier this month that he was more lenient in his upbringing compared to his own experiences, although he believes his parenting style might be considered strict by American standards. The actor shares four children with his ex-wife Shriver, namely Katherine, Christina, Patrick, and Christopher. Their marriage ended in May 2011 following revelations of Schwarzenegger's affair with former housekeeper Mildred Baena, resulting in the birth of their son Joseph. Schwarzenegger and Shriver's divorce was officially concluded in December 2021.

During his conversation with host Jimmy Kimmel, Schwarzenegger reminisced about stories from his kids' childhood, specifically the ones that they frequently mention.

One particular anecdote involved his son neglecting to make his bed and instead having the nanny do it, despite it being against the rules. Schwarzenegger revealed that upon discovering this, he took decisive action by opening the doors, lifting the mattress, and tossing it off the balcony into the swimming pool.

Additional teachings from Schwarzenegger included chucking shoes into the fireplace and removing lightbulbs.

“It’s a good lesson,” Kimmel added at the time.