Josh Hartnett might have risen to fame in movies like Pearl Harbor, but one of his best roles comes from television in the underrated . The fact that the actor was away from the big screen for a while had many wondering what happened to Josh Hartnett. Now that we are in a Hartnett renaissance with movies like Oppenheimer and Trap, it is clear that his focus on smaller projects allowed him to develop his versatility as an actor. Many of these are lesser known, but feature an excellent performance from Hartnett.

Hartnett often plays unconventional characters, and this was especially apparent in the 2010s. He starred in the quirky comedy Oh Lucy! as a teacher with an unusual outlook on life, and while the Belgian time travel romance The Lovers may not be one of Josh Hartnett's best movies, he was praised for his dual role performance. While Hartnett has acted across many genres, he has made a name for himself in horror. He was excellent in the 2007 vampire horror movie 30 Days of Night, but Josh Hartnett's best horror project is the 2014 TV show, Penny Dreadful.

, known as "Penny Dreadfuls." The series has a gothic horror tone and follows familiar characters from existing literature, like Dorian Grey, Victor Frankenstein, and Abraham van Helsing. The costume design in Penny Dreadful is outstanding, and the series is both dramatic and scary. Declining views and a budget cut meant the show ended abruptly and was largely forgotten, but Penny Dreadful has a 91% positive critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is destined to become a 2010s TV classic.

, as the series has an extremely strong ensemble cast. Eva Green plays Vanessa Ives, the central character in the series, whose backstory is one of the main plots. Billie Piper, Timothy Dalton, and Rory Kinnear all have central roles, appearing in all 27 episodes of Penny Dreadful. The series was well-received, with the second season getting a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with Eva Green and Josh Hartnett's performances being especially lauded.

While some of Penny Dreadful's characters are evil, most are morally ambiguous, allowing the actors to show a lot of nuance in their portrayals. , making him a werewolf too. Chandler has a dark backstory which he is trying to make amends for, but struggles with the fact that he hurts people without meaning to when he becomes a wolf. Chandler is charming and heroic, but extremely dangerous without trying to be. This gave Hartnett an interesting character to play, and he shone in the role.

Josh Hartnett's career renaissance began in 2023, when he starred in both Black Mirror season 6 and Oppenheimer. Before then, he had not taken on a major role since Penny Dreadful. In addition to all his recent movie roles,Hartnett has an upcoming Netflix series, set in Newfoundland, Canada. The show does not yet have a title, but it will see Hartnett as a fisherman trying to protect his family from a sea monster. Hartnett does horror well, and his new thriller may be the perfect show to watch if you miss .