Netflix’s New Sea Monster Thriller ‘Below’ Finally Gets Its New Look, and It’s Already Sending Chills
Josh Hartnett has spent the past several years quietly rebuilding his career through a string of genre-savvy roles, from prestige dramas to horror-adjacent thrillers that lean into his everyman appeal. His latest project takes that momentum straight into creature-feature territory, and the first poster art just gave fans a proper look at what’s coming.
That project is ‘Below,’ a six-episode limited series set in a tight-knit fishing community in Newfoundland, Canada, where a mysterious sea creature begins terrorizing the town. Hartnett stars as Calvin Penney, a big-hearted but stubborn fisherman still haunted by his father’s mysterious death decades earlier, who must now fight to protect his family and community from a threat rising out of the ocean depths.
Ahead of its world premiere as part of TIFF’s Primetime program on September 10, the show’s first official poster has arrived, teasing the eerie, iceberg-laden visuals that define its Newfoundland setting. Netflix has confirmed the series will officially debut on the platform on October 8, giving audiences a tight window between its festival unveiling and its wider streaming release.
Calvin’s fight against the creature is tied closely to his relationships with his children, who have each followed very different paths in life. His son Wade, played by ‘Stranger Things’ star Charlie Heaton, is still trying to find direction, while his other children navigate their own complicated returns to a hometown already on edge.
To confront the threat lurking beneath the water, Calvin teams up with a visiting marine researcher named Fonda Howander, played by Mackenzie Davis, as the two work to uncover buried secrets tied to the island’s history before it’s too late. According to the show’s official description, the series blends local myth, suspense, and heartfelt humor while exploring themes of family, community, and inevitable change.
Rounding out the cast are Ruby Stokes, Kaleb Horn, Rohan Campbell, and Willow Kean, giving the series a sizable ensemble to build out its small-town dynamics alongside the central creature threat. That mix of rising talent and established genre veterans suggests ‘Below’ is aiming for something more character-driven than a straightforward monster thriller.
The series comes from creator, showrunner, and executive producer Jesse McKeown, known previously for his work on ‘The Umbrella Academy.’ Hartnett also serves as an executive producer on the project, alongside Jessica Rhoades through her company Pacesetter, Chris Hatcher, Jamie Childs, Louise Sutton, and Sharon Hall.
To capture the specific atmosphere of a remote Newfoundland fishing village, the production filmed entirely on location in St. John’s, Newfoundland, rather than relying on studio sets or substitute locations. That commitment to authenticity extends to the show’s visual identity as well, with early marketing materials leaning heavily into the region’s iceberg-dotted coastline and moody, overcast tone.
Given how tightly the plot weaves together local mythology with the more traditional horror elements of a lurking sea creature, that grounded setting appears central to how the series distinguishes itself from other recent monster-focused streaming projects.
With Hartnett stepping into both a starring and producing role, and McKeown bringing his own genre sensibilities from his ‘Umbrella Academy’ background, ‘Below’ looks positioned to be one of Netflix’s more atmospheric fall offerings. Its TIFF premiere should offer an early read on critical reception before the show reaches a much wider audience just weeks later.
What are you most excited to see in Netflix’s Below?
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