Top 10 Actresses with Unique Voices

For starters, let’s go back in time to the golden age of Hollywood. Bacall started her career as a model before moving on to Broadway and eventually, the silver screen. She had the classic Hollywood looks, but her voice set her apart and made her an icon. With her deep and sultry tone, it made her perfect for the femme fatale archetypes popular at the time. Even though she was only 19 when she made her film debut in “To Have and Have Not”, her husky voice gave her an air of maturity and sensuality that would keep her at the top of the film noir genre for years.

#9: Scarlett Johansson

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Today she is an A-list celebrity, but when Johansson first started out as a child actor she had a hard time finding work because of her voice. As Johansson has put it, a 9-year old with a deep voice just doesn’t sell Jell-O! Nowadays though… she gets work because of her voice. Just look at the movie “Her,” in which a man falls in love with his Siri-like operating system, which is voiced by Johansson. Poor Theodore… he didn’t stand a chance with a voice like that! In addition to that notable role, she has done cartoon voices and is also is a rather talented singer - her velvety voice translating beautifully to music.

Hunter’s voice is more than unique - it tells the story of her life and the adversities she’s faced. The actress was born and raised in Georgia where she got her subtle southern twang. When she was nine, she contracted the mumps, which left her completely deaf in her left ear. It’s hard to say how much her deafness affects her speech, but it’s not something she lets get in her way, and this overarching attitude is reflected in her characters who don’t take crap from anyone. She also has a pronounced lisp that works with the tone of her voice and makes it refreshingly unique.

#7: Kristen Schaal

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You can love her voice or you can hate it, but you can’t deny that it’s unique. Schaal started out doing stand-up comedy contrasting her high pitched baby voice with dark and twisted subject matter. She has since been the voice behind many cartoon characters. Some of her most popular roles include Louise Belcher in the animated-comedy “Bob’s Burgers”, and her leading role as Carol in “The Last Man on Earth.” When Schaal started out as an actress, people said that her voice would be a hindrance to her career, but just listen to her now!

She always sounds like she’s on the verge of losing her voice and it is SO oddly alluring. Bush says that the rasp came early on in her life and that people constantly think she’s sick because of it. Sometimes even offering her lozenges, which she of course accepts because they’re delicious. Despite her raspy voice, she has played a lot of different roles, from Detective Erin Lindsay in “Chicago PD” to a love-spurned college student in “John Tucker Must Die”. She also landed a gig playing the voice of Voyd in the long-awaited “Incredibles 2”. After all, every superhero needs a signature voice!

When you have a unique voice, you can either hide it or use it to shout loud and proud. Drescher definitely takes the later route and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Not only is she proud of her thick New York accent and nasally voice, but she also uses it to her advantage. She and Peter Marc Jacobson created a show and character that perfectly fit Drescher’s voice, and sure enough, “The Nanny” was instantly successful. It remains Drescher’s most popular and arguably most hilarious role. Since its conclusion, Drescher has been busy writing books, hosting her own short-lived talk show, doing countless guest spots and even creating her own non-profit organization for cancer.

#4: Jennifer Tilly

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She can do sexy, sweet and downright terrifying. When Tilly first started out in acting, she had a few directors who tried to make her change her voice, but to that she said hell no! It’s her trademark, it’s made her memorable and it’s led the way throughout her career. She’s been acting since 1983 and she’s done it all: live-action, video games, and cartoons. Outside of acting she’s also a professional poker player; employing her deceptively-sweet voice and formidable skills to score multiple titles and almost $1,000,000 in winnings.

Let’s start this off by saying that Kathleen Turner voiced arguably the most iconically sexy cartoon character in the history of the medium: Jessica Rabbit. While she doesn’t do the singing part, Turner’s husky voice is perfect for Jessica. She isn’t afraid of taking on roles that poke fun at her voice either. In “Friends,” she plays Chandler’s fabulous transgender father Bob, aka Helena Handbasket. Her performance of “I Feel Pretty” is everything you could ask for! When she’s not acting or doing voice work, she kills it on Broadway, her powerful voice effortlessly commanding the attention of the masses.

#2: Audrey Hepburn

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We couldn’t do this list without talking about one of the biggest icons from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Her voice had a lot of interesting features, so we’ll start with her accent. Hepburn grew up in England, but she was a world traveler and reportedly spoke 5 languages fluently. This gave her an accent that was all her own. She also talked at an even pace with an emphasis on diction. Her most common roles were women who seemed innocent, but had a bit of a wild side. But with her pet fawn Pippin, her grace, and a regal voice to match, she was basically a real-life Disney Princess. Before we reveal our top voice, here are a few honorable mentions. Isabella Rossellini Pauley Perrette Eartha Kitt

For our number one spot, we went with an actress whose name literally means famous. Her deep-timbering voice gives her an air of authority, and her Persian accent lends it an exotic twist. She’s often cast as doctors and other such badass women, which is a consistently good fit given that she’s inspiring in her own right. Aghdashloo established herself as an actress in Iran, moved to England at the start of the Iranian Revolution, and studied politics before returning to acting. Between her voice and her raw talent as an actress, we just can’t get enough of her!