Netflix Drops ‘Below’ Trailer Ahead of October Release: Josh Hartnett Faces a Sea Monster Threatening His Newfoundland Town
Josh Hartnett has been quietly building one of the more interesting late-career runs in Hollywood, bouncing between prestige projects like ‘Oppenheimer’ and genre fare like M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Trap.’ After a relatively quiet stretch, the actor is gearing up for a busy fall stacked with high-profile releases across multiple platforms.
Before Hartnett heads into theaters for the Colleen Hoover adaptation ‘Verity’ alongside Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson, he’s making a stop in the icy waters of Newfoundland for something considerably darker and more unsettling. That project has now officially dropped its full trailer, giving fans their clearest look yet at what’s coming.
The series is ‘Below,’ a six-episode limited thriller premiering on Netflix on October 8, described by fans of the genre as a spiritual descendant of the kind of atmospheric, creature-driven horror popularized by filmmakers like John Carpenter and Steven Spielberg. Hartnett stars as Calvin Penney, a “big-hearted but stubborn” fisherman still haunted by his father’s mysterious death decades earlier, whose quiet life is upended when an unidentified sea creature begins terrorizing his small coastal town.
Determined to protect his son Wade, played by ‘Stranger Things’ actor Charlie Heaton, and the rest of his fractured family, Calvin teams up with visiting marine researcher Fonda, played by Mackenzie Davis, to confront the creature and dig into the island’s buried secrets before it’s too late. The supporting cast also includes Ruby Stokes, Kaleb Horn, Rohan Campbell, and Willow Kean rounding out the close-knit but increasingly panicked community.
Hartnett has been vocal about what drew him to the project in the first place. “I read the first two scripts so quickly, in less than an hour,” Hartnett told Netflix’s Tudum. “The voice was so clear, the concept was so engaging, and the character was fantastic. I’d never read anything like it before.”
Davis echoed that enthusiasm when discussing her own experience filming alongside Hartnett. “Josh and I were like two buddy cops solving a mystery,” Davis said. “I’ve never done that in anything else… I like being in that world so much.” She added that she specifically sought out projects that balance humor, scares, and genuine intelligence, calling that combination “rarer than you might think.”
The show’s Newfoundland setting wasn’t a random choice, either. Creator and showrunner Jesse McKeown, known for his work on ‘The Umbrella Academy,’ explained that the location came from a deeply personal place, describing years of visiting the region and being drawn to its striking contrast between rugged isolation and genuine warmth among its people.
That blend of tone carries through the show’s premise as well, with Netflix describing it as a suspenseful mystery rooted in family drama rather than a purely supernatural creature feature, despite the ominous marketing built around its underwater threat. The series was filmed on location in St. John’s, Newfoundland, giving the production an authentic backdrop that several early reviewers have already compared to the small-town dread of Apple TV’s ‘Widow’s Bay.’
Before ‘Below’ makes its Netflix debut, the series will have its world premiere as part of the Primetime program at the Toronto International Film Festival, giving early audiences the first chance to see how Hartnett’s latest genre outing plays on the big screen. With McKeown’s genre pedigree, a cast stacked with recognizable young talent, and Hartnett fully committed as both star and executive producer, ‘Below’ is shaping up to be one of Netflix’s more ambitious swings at prestige horror this fall.
Given the streamer’s recent track record with limited genre series pulling in massive viewership, ‘Below’ has real potential to become another word-of-mouth hit once it finally surfaces this October.
What makes you most excited for 'Below'?
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