‘Below’ Debuts With a Solid Rotten Tomatoes Score, but Viewers Aren’t Quite as Sold on Netflix’s Sea Monster Thriller

Netflix has a long tradition of dropping moody genre series in the fall, and its latest entry plunges straight into the deep. ‘Below‘, the new limited series starring Josh Hartnett, pits a fisherman against something terrifying lurking beneath the waves. After landing on the platform, the show is already generating plenty of conversation about its early reception.

Sea monster stories have a way of dividing audiences, since the genre balances scares, atmosphere and character drama. The early numbers suggest that ‘Below’ is working better for critics than for some viewers.

On Rotten Tomatoes, ‘Below’ currently averages 81% on the Tomatometer, a healthy fresh rating. The Popcornmeter average sits lower at 60%, which hints at a gap between professional critics and audience reactions. The series is listed as a drama and mystery-thriller with one season, running from 2026 to the present.

That kind of split is not unusual for a slow-burn horror series. Critics often reward atmosphere and craft, while viewers who come in expecting a fast monster story can be less patient.

Hartnett’s performance is the point of broadest agreement. One reviewer called it perhaps the most mature leading-man performance of his career, while another singled him out as the standout of a charismatic ensemble. Critics also point to the show’s moody visuals, including thick mist, decaying buildings and still water that give the series an eerie, otherworldly feel.

Reviewers have also credited the Newfoundland setting, where the series was filmed, for lending authenticity. Variety called the show a gripping, exhilarating ride that blends horror and suspense with climate-crisis themes, and it singled out the fourth episode as particularly riveting.

Not everyone is fully on board. Several reviews say the story loses steam near the end, with some arguing that the series struggles to balance its many themes and doesn’t give each storyline a proper conclusion. One review suggested the show has too much going on for a six-episode run.

Accents have also drawn attention, with some reviewers questioning Hartnett’s Newfoundland accent and Charlie Heaton’s, while others praised the cast’s work. The harshest take compared the series to a thin washout that starts strongly and then sinks, and one outlet felt it is not as strong as the similar ‘Widow’s Bay’.

The story is set in Snook’s Arm, a small Newfoundland fishing town where an unidentified sea creature begins terrorizing residents. Hartnett plays Calvin Penney, a fisherman still haunted by his father’s unexplained death. He teams up with Fonda Howander, a visiting marine researcher played by Mackenzie Davis, to protect the community and uncover the secrets buried in the island’s past.

The series blends monster mystery with family drama, as Calvin also tries to protect his children. Charlie Heaton plays his son Wade, with Willow Kean, Ruby Stokes, Rohan Campbell and Kaleb Horn rounding out the Penney family. Natasha Henstridge, Joshua Close and Mary Walsh also appear.

Something’s in the water. Josh Hartnett, Mackenzie Davis, and Charlie Heaton star in the suspenseful new thriller BELOW. Coming October 8. https://t.co/WEdWV3DsOr

— Netflix (@netflix) July 28, 2026

The six-episode limited series was created by Jesse McKeown, who has written for ‘The Umbrella Academy’. Karen Walton, Perry Chafe and Natty Zavitz wrote episodes, while Jamie Childs, Helen Shaver and Stephen Dunn directed. Hartnett is also an executive producer, alongside McKeown and Jessica Rhoades.

McKeown reportedly developed the story after spending time in Newfoundland, hoping to use its fishing communities and coastal landscapes as the backdrop. The production shot on location in Newfoundland and Labrador from July to October last year.

All six episodes dropped together on Thursday, Oct. 8, so viewers can binge the whole story in one sitting. Reviewers who saw only the first couple of episodes noted that the show becomes more interesting in its second installment, which suggests that patience may pay off.

Because it is billed as a limited series, the story appears designed to wrap up in a single run. For fans of aquatic horror and small-town mysteries, it may be worth diving in, even if the ending divides opinion.

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