MOVIE NEWS – Josh Hartnett confronts an unidentified sea monster in Netflix’s forthcoming six-part thriller series. The first teaser for Below promises an oppressive aquatic mystery set in an isolated Canadian fishing town, combining the tension of Jaws with the sinister atmosphere associated with Stephen King’s stories.

Josh Hartnett battles a mysterious creature from the sea in the first teaser for Netflix’s upcoming thriller miniseries. The streaming service has recently found an audience for several monster-driven stories connected to the water, with Thrash attracting viewers earlier this year and a sequel to Under Paris already moving forward. Below casts Hartnett as a lifelong fisherman who understands the waters surrounding his home better than anybody else, yet the threat emerging from the depths is beyond anything he can comprehend. He is joined by Mackenzie Davis from Terminator: Dark Fate, Ruby Stokes, Stranger Things star Charlie Heaton, and Species actor Natasha Henstridge.

The first glimpse of Below establishes a bleak environment designed to draw audiences into an increasingly tense mystery. What initially appears to be a peaceful remote town and an idyllic place to raise a family rapidly changes when an unseen presence begins terrorising the surrounding waters. Hartnett’s fisherman, Calvin Penney, witnesses the unfolding danger at close range, while the return of his daughter gives the crisis far more personal and dangerous consequences. Netflix’s teaser also offers the first opportunity to hear the distinctive Newfoundland accent the actor adopted for the role.

The official logline offers a concise description of Calvin’s struggle once the unidentified creature begins threatening the entire community. “When a mysterious sea creature terrorizes a remote town, a fisherman must fight to protect his family, his community, and his way of life.”

Below was created by Jesse McKeown, whose previous television credits include The Umbrella Academy, Letterkenny, and The Sinner. Hartnett’s accent adds an appropriate degree of authenticity, as the showrunner has confirmed that the story is set and filmed in Newfoundland, Canada. Speaking with Netflix’s Tudum, McKeown explained that he had visited the region for years and had long wanted to place an ambitious story within its distinctive landscape.

“I’ve been coming to Newfoundland for many years, and it’s become part of my life. 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. It’s such a unique landscape and such a rugged, dangerous, isolated, scary place in a lot of ways. But then there’s also this other side to it, which is that the community is so warm and there are so many eccentricities about the place.”

All six episodes of Below are scheduled to arrive on Netflix on October 8, ensuring that the complete chilling story will be available before Halloween. Numerous details remain concealed, including the exact nature of the creature confronting the town’s residents. The menace lurking beneath the water evokes the classic tension of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws, while the unsettling environment and supernatural horror suggest the creeping dread of a Stephen King story. The full extent of what awaits Calvin and his family should become clearer as the premiere approaches.

Source: MovieWeb, Netflix Tudum