US viewers find Peaky Blinders the most difficult series to follow. Blame Tom Hardy's accent

If you have watched the Netflix series Peaky Blinders with subtitles, you are not alone. A recent study by Preply shows that American viewers had the most challenging time following Tom Hardy's dialogue due to his accent. That, in turn, has made Peaky Blinders the most challenging TV programme to understand. Peaky Blinders is a post-World War I Birmingham-set gangster drama, which frequently features Hardy as Alfie Solomons, a Jewish gang leader.

Here, try following Tom Hardy's accent:

The list studied by Preply mostly featured series based in Europe. After Peaky Blinders, viewers said that they had the most challenging time understanding Derry Girls, Game of Thrones, Outlander and Downton Abbey. The Emmy-nominated hit Korean series Squid Game is also seventh on the list, after Bridgerton. 

The celebrities on the list include British actors Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Benedict Cumberbatch, Idris Elba and James McAvoy; as well as non-native English speakers Sofia Vergara, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jackie Chan. The only two American actors mentioned were Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt.  

Here are the accents Americans find most difficult to understand:

The study also shows that more than half of the viewers in the US watch series or shows with closed captions or subtitles. 18% of respondents also said that they watched with subtitles to 'learn a new language'. 

What does this poll show: The survey was done among 1,200 respondents, to find the relevance of subtitles. For Gen Z, it found the following: 

• 70% of Gen Zers were much more likely to be frequent users of subtitles 
• Gen Z is more likely (nearly 74%) to consume content in public than others 

In fact,

• 43% of the respondents admitted to watching content on public transit,
• 42% do so at work, and
• 37% confirmed they even watch videos while walking or driving somewhere.