Josh Hartnett Is in Beast Mode

I’M TALKING ABOUT Jaws with Josh Hartnett, and there’s a name he can’t remember. He’s searching his mind for it, wearing a dark blue button-down over a white t-shirt, with a pair of clear-framed glasses on his eyes and a couple days of stubble on his face. Not [Richard] Dreyfuss—Quint.

God, why can’t I remember his name?” I can’t remember the name either. Having something in common with an A-lister would be nice if it didn’t leave us both searching our minds and staring in silence across a Zoom screen. At this point, I almost regret comparing his character Calvin in Below to the film’s protagonist, Chief Brody.

That’s why we were talking about Jaws. Hartnett’s new Netflix series offers a sort of updated take on Steven Spielberg’s Amity Island adventure. Except it’s set (and shot) in Newfoundland, and Hartnett’s co-star is not an oversized animatronic shark, but rather a Lovecraftian sea monster brought to life mostly through the powers of suggestion (and, sure, some CGI tentacles).

When I said it felt like he was getting his Roy Scheider on, he didn’t agree. Suddenly, the name comes to me: Robert Shaw. I throw it out to Hartnett like—also no pun intended—a lifefloat.

Jesus God,” he says, removing his hand from his head in relief and looking up toward the ceiling as a big smile forms along his face. All I could think of was ‘Ya follow?’ from The Sting. Like, he’s such an amazing actor.” You’ll have to forgive him for forgetting.

It’s a big week for Hartnett, and he feels the pressure. Only a handful of days after Verity, in which he stars alongside Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson, opened at the top of the box office, Below will drop all six of its creature-feature episodes on Netflix. To put it simply, Hartnett has the juice right now.