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Josh Hartnett returns to the small screen in Netflix’s new series Below, a six-part drama filmed in Newfoundland that pairs the actor with Stranger Things’ Charlie Heaton. The show mixes folklore, suspense and community drama as a remote town faces a mysterious threat from the sea.
Plot
Below centres on **Calvin Penney**, a stubborn but warm-hearted fisherman still shaken by his father’s unexplained death decades earlier. Life on his isolated Newfoundland island is upended when an unidentified sea creature begins preying on the community.
What to expect from Below, Josh Hartnett’s latest series
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Determined to protect his young son, Wade, Calvin allies with a visiting marine researcher. Together they try to confront the creature and unearth long-buried secrets before the situation spirals out of control.
The six-part series is described as a blend of local myth, tense moments and gentle humour, exploring themes of **family, community and change**.
Cast
Hartnett leads the cast as Calvin. Opposite him, Charlie Heaton — best known for Stranger Things and linked to the Peaky Blinders franchise — plays his son, Wade.
- Mackenzie Davis as Fonda Howander
- Willow Kean
- Ruby Stokes
- Rohan Campbell
- Kaleb Horn
What the makers and cast say
Hartnett has spoken about Calvin as a man marked by repeated setbacks. He told reporters: “He is a guy who has had a series of setbacks and tragedies in his life starting at a young age. He’s felt that he’s cursed and that his place in the world is untenable, that even his community doesn’t see the point of him, and he lives in a very small community, so he feels untethered.”
Creator Jesse McKeown explained his choice of location: “I just always felt like I wanted to set something here, that this would be a great place for something big and something kind of epic.” He added that Newfoundland’s landscape is at once rugged and isolating, but balanced by warm, eccentric local communities.
Hartnett said the scripts drew him in quickly: “I read the first two scripts in less than an hour. The voice was so clear, the concept was so engaging, and the character was fantastic.” He also noted his interest in Newfoundland’s distinct history and culture.
Release
All six episodes of Below arrive on Netflix on Thursday, October 8.
Trailer
The series trailer is available from Netflix ahead of the launch. It offers the first look at the island setting, the creature at the heart of the story and the central relationship between Calvin and Wade.
