Josh Hartnett

Joshua Daniel Hartnett (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor. He began his career on ABC's drama series Cracker (1997–1998), after which he became known as a teen idol through starring parts in films such as Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, The Faculty (both 1998), The Virgin Suicides, Pearl Harbor, O, Black Hawk Down (all 2001), and 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002).

Hartnett continued to work steadily throughout the 2000s, with a mix of leading and supporting roles in Hollywood Homicide (2003), Wicker Park (2004), Sin City (2005), The Black Dahlia, Lucky Number Slevin (both 2006), 30 Days of Night (2007), August (2008), and I Come with the Rain (2009). He experienced a career resurgence with his roles as Ernest Lawrence in Oppenheimer (2023), a serial killer in Trap (2024), and a family husband in Verity (2026).

On television, Hartnett portrayed Ethan Chandler on the Showtime fantasy series Penny Dreadful (2014–2016). He also appeared in an episode of Black Mirror (2023) and guest-starred in The Bear (2024–2026).

Early life and education Joshua Daniel Hartnett was born on July 21, 1978, in Saint Paul, Minnesota, He has three younger siblings. Hartnett was raised Catholic, attending Nativity of Our Lord Catholic School. At Minneapolis South High School, he played football, but a knee injury forced him off the team when he was 16. He tried youth theater, acting in productions of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Guys and Dolls, and attracted attention from a talent scout. Originally interested in becoming a painter, he decided to pursue film acting while working in a video rental shop, where he became acquainted with films such as Trainspotting, 12 Monkeys, and The Usual Suspects.

After graduating from high school in 1996, Hartnett moved to Purchase, New York, to attend the Conservatory of Theatre Arts & Film at the State University of New York at Purchase. He was expelled after writing a letter to the dean contending that the college's evaluation system stifled students' creativity.

Career Shortly after arriving in Los Angeles, he caught an improbable break, landing a part in the short-lived ABC drama Cracker. His first feature film was Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, in which he played the son of character Laurie Strode. Released on August 5, 1998, it performed well at the box office.

Hartnett developed a successful film career, appearing in The Faculty (1998), The Virgin Suicides (1999), and Black Hawk Down (2001). In 2001, he starred in the war drama Pearl Harbor. He was originally scheduled to play Tino in Deuces Wild but dropped out of the film. He also starred in O, an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Othello set in an American high school, playing Hugo, the film's version of Iago. In 2002, he starred in the romantic comedy 40 Days and 40 Nights.

In the early 2000s, Hartnett was approached several times to play the role of Clark Kent / Superman for a project originally helmed by Brett Ratner but always turned it down, not wanting to commit to a predicted ten-year role. Hartnett said, "It just wasn't the kind of movie I wanted to do. I turned down other superhero roles as well." For Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises, Hartnett declined the role of Bruce Wayne, which went to Christian Bale.

Hartnett was chosen as one of Teen Peoples "21 Hottest Stars Under 21" in 1999, Teen Peoples "25 Hottest Stars under 25", and one of Peoples "50 Most Beautiful People" in 2002. He was also voted Bliss magazine's "3rd Sexiest Male". During this period, he was marketed as a teen idol and a potential megastar; his unease with this public image led to his disillusionment with pursuing roles in high‑profile films.

His 2007 roles included Resurrecting the Champ and the graphic novel-based 30 Days of Night, in which he played a small-town sheriff. Hartnett described the second film as "supernatural, but kind of a western". He was going to play trumpet player Chet Baker in The Prince of Cool but left the project after disagreeing with the producer's ideas.

In 2008, Hartnett played Charlie Babbit in the stage adaptation of Barry Morrow's film Rain Man at the Apollo Theatre in London's West End. He starred in the Emporio Armani fragrance campaign, "Diamonds for Men", becoming the first male celebrity to represent Giorgio Armani Beauty. He has appeared on magazine covers including Cosmogirl, Details, Entertainment Weekly, Girlfriend, Seventeen, Vanity Fair, GQ, and Vman, and in magazines such as Vogue, Elle, People, Glamour, In Touch, and InStyle.

In 2009, Hartnett produced the music video for Kid Cudi's "Pursuit of Happiness". During this period, he acted in several direct-to-DVD and international films that received negative reviews, including August (2008), I Come with the Rain (2009), Bunraku (2010), Girl Walks into a Bar (2011), Stuck Between Stations (2011), The Lovers (2013), Parts per Billion (2014), and Wild Horses (2015). In 2013, he was a guest of honor on Off Plus Camera.

In 2014, he was cast as Ethan Chandler in the Gothic horror series Penny Dreadful, which was filmed in Dublin and other locations in Ireland. His character was later revealed to be Lawrence Talbot / the Wolfman. In 2017, he performed in Atsuko Hirayanagi's independent film Oh Lucy!, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. That year, he also starred in and produced the survival film 6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain, which received negative reviews. He continued acting in smaller films that were received negatively, including The Ottoman Lieutenant (2017), She's Missing (2019), Inherit the Viper (2019), Valley of the Gods (2019), and Ida Red (2021).

In 2020, he portrayed Canadian journalist Victor Malarek in the crime drama Target Number One. Hartnett appeared in Guy Ritchie's Wrath of Man (2021) in a supporting role before Ritchie cast him in Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre (2023). In January 2022, Hartnett was cast as Ernest Lawrence in Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023). In July 2022, he joined the sixth season of Black Mirror.

In 2024, he starred in M. Night Shyamalan's thriller Trap, playing Cooper Abbott, a serial killer, known as "the Butcher". Between 2024 and 2025, Hartnett played Frank in the third season of The Bear. In December 2024, he joined the cast of Verity, the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover's 2018 novel.

In 2025, Hartnett starred in the action film Fight or Flight, playing a mercenary tracking a target on a plane. They have four children. The couple married in November 2021. They live in Hampshire, England.

Speaking about fame, Hartnett said: "I know what it's like to be in that whole world. I was up there for a couple of years, and it was uncomfortable. I think trying to stay at the top is a shortcut to unhappiness." He took a 15-month break from acting, saying: "I spent a bit of time really thinking about whether this was the right thing for me."

In September 2025, Hartnett was hospitalized after a car crash in Canada. The vehicle he was in collided with a police patrol car in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Activism Hartnett has been involved in various causes. In 2007, he took time out from filming to support the Global Cool's green lifestyle campaign.

In 2012, Hartnett joined Barack Obama's campaign in Minnesota, appearing at events such as the Minnesota Greater Together Youth Summit before formally endorsing the President on the campaign's official YouTube channel. He and Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak also appeared at the University of Minnesota's McNamara Alumni Center for an Obama Q&A in April.

Filmography Film

Year Title Role Notes 1998 Halloween H20: 20 Years Later John Tate The Faculty Zeke Tyler 1999 The Virgin Suicides Trip Fontaine 2000 Here on Earth Jasper Arnold 2001 Black Hawk Down SSG Matt Eversmann Blow Dry Brian Allen O Hugo Goulding Pearl Harbor Danny Walker Short6 Gianni Compilation of six cinematic shorts Town & Country Tom Stoddard 2002 40 Days and 40 Nights Matt Sullivan 2003 Hollywood Homicide K.C. Calden Zéro Un The Neighbor Compilation of ten cinematic shorts produced by Luc Besson 2004 Wicker Park Matthew Simon 2005 Mozart and the Whale Donald Morton Sin CityThe Salesman / The Lady Killer Stories of Lost Souls The Neighbor 2006 The Black Dahlia Dwight "Bucky" Bleichert Lucky Number Slevin Slevin Kelevra 2007 Resurrecting the Champ Erik Kernan Stories USA Gianni 30 Days of NightEben Oleson 2008 August Tom Sterling Also producer 2009 I Come with the Rain Kline 2010 Bunraku The Drifter 2011 Girl Walks into a Bar Sam Salazar Stuck Between Stations Paddy 2013 The Lovers James Stewart / Jay Fennel 2014 Parts per Billion Len 2015 Wild Horses KC Briggs The Long Home Unreleased 2017 Oh Lucy! John Woodruff The Ottoman Lieutenant Jude 6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain Eric LeMarque Also producer 2019 She's Missing Ren 2020 Inherit the Viper Kip Riley Target Number One Victor Malarek Also known as Most Wanted Valley of the GodsJohn Ecas 2021 Wrath of Man Dave "Boy Sweat" Hancock Ida Red Wyatt Walker 2023 Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre Danny Francesco Oppenheimer Ernest Lawrence 2024 Trap Cooper Abbott 2025 Fight or Flight Lucas Reyes 2026 Jeremy Crawford Post-production TBA Jack Freeman Post-production

Television Year Title Role Notes 1997–1998 Cracker Michael Fitzgerald Main role 2002 Saturday Night Live Himself (host) Episode: "Josh Hartnett/Pink" 2008 T Takes Josh Web series 2014–2016 Penny Dreadful Ethan Chandler / Lawrence Talbot / the Wolfman Main role 2015; 2019 Drunk History Clark Gable Episode: "Miami"Joachim NeumannEpisode: "Love" 2020 Die Hart Josh Hartnett 4 episodes Paradise Lost Yates Forsythe Main role 2021 Exterminate All the Brutes White Man Miniseries; main role 2022 The Fear Index Alexander HoffmannMiniseries; main role 2023 Black Mirror David Ross Episode: "Beyond the Sea" 2024–2026 The Bear Frank 3 episodes 2026 Below Calvin Penney Main role (miniseries)

Stage Year Title Role Notes 2008 Rain Man Charlie Babbitt Apollo Theatre The 24 Hour Plays Main Man Annual fundraiser at The Old Vic theater involving actors, writers and directors creating and presenting a series of six plays in a day

Music videos Year Title Artist Notes 1999 "Playground Love" Air The Virgin Suicides soundtrack 2001 "There You'll Be" Faith Hill Pearl Harbor soundtrack 2010 "Pursuit of Happiness" Kid Cudi Producer

Awards and nominations