We can’t stop thinking about Lisa Ann Walter showing her South Philly accent to the ‘Good Morning America’ crew
“You don’t ever say a consonant.”
A new video of Abbott Elementary’s favorite South Philly girly, Lisa Ann Walter — known on the show as Melissa Schemmenti — shows the actress embracing a South Philly accent.
In a Wednesday interview on Good Morning America, Michael Strahan asked Walter about her character, describing her as “tough.”
“Whadya-talkin’-bout hun?” Walter responded. “She’s getting work done.”
Strahan went on to tell Walter that she “nails this Philly accent.”
Walter said she’s asked all the time how she was able to get it down so well. She said it’s a combination of being from Maryland and having parts of a Baltimore accent — which stresses vowels, especially ‘o’s — down.
“Then with Philly, you just shove it all to the front of your mouth ... you don’t ever say a consonant.”
Though Walter didn’t have Philadelphia ties before her character’s Abbott debut in 2021, the city has embraced her character as a favorite along the way.
Walter told the GMA crew she feels embraced by South Philly.
“[When] they’re like Melissa is one of us,” she said, “there’s nothing better to hear.”