Josh Hartnett's "gripping" thriller jumps to the top of Netflix's chart days after release

If you have a Netflix subscription and wanted to binge-watch a series over the weekend, then the new supernatural thriller Below was a good place to start. If the streamer's charts are anything to go by, it seems a lot of people had that idea.

The six-part series sees Josh Hartnett portray Calvin Penney, a hard-bitten fisherman and iceberg harvester working in the remote – and spookily-named – Newfoundland town of Snook's Rest.

Trouble soon comes for the community in the form of a mysterious sea creature, which terrorises the residents. Calvin is then thrust into two battles – one to save his family, and the other to preserve his vanishing way of life.

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Created by Jesse McKeown, the series was released in full on Thursday (8 October), and it has proven to be popular with viewers after surging past East of Eden to the top of Netflix's worldwide TV chart (via FlixPatrol).

Below has also been praised by professional critics, with Rotten Tomatoes currently reporting a solid approval rating of 83% from 36 reviews. The audience score, however, is markedly lower at 59%.

In Digital Spy's three-star review, we described it as "perfect autumn viewing", adding: "[It] is an atmospheric creature feature, spread over six chapters of TV, that starts out strong but could have been better served with the movie treatment."

"It is a fun, even cosy, watch for horror fans who love to snuggle up with some scares... Grab a hot chocolate plus one of those sweaters that Hartnett wears so well and settle in for some enjoyable, if somewhat slight, autumnal viewing," we added.

RadioTimes was also full of praise, writing: "Jesse McKeown has delivered a gripping series which also tackles worthy topics including the urgency of climate change, the importance of compassion in an increasingly uncaring world and the power of community."

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"Below is an entertaining concoction, though even over just six episodes, it is a little thinly stretched and overly earnest," opined The Financial Times, while Variety dubbed it a "captivating ride blending horror and suspense".

In addition to Hartnett, who also serves as an executive producer on the series, the stellar cast for the thriller includes Mackenzie Davis, Charlie Heaton, Ruby Stokes, Willow Kean and Rohan Campbell.

Below is streaming now on Netflix.

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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media.  His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.