Josh Hartnett on his Hollywood hiatus, stalker incident

Josh Hartnett began challenging himself on the big screen not long after a stalking incident and getting pigeonholed as a heartthrob.

Last Updated on August 2, 2024

Josh Hartnett

In the late ‘90s and early aughts, Josh Hartnett was at the top of the heartthrob list, making his big screen debut in Halloween: H20 and launching into a stream of movies that easily placed him in the public eye – especially that of the teenage girl. But with that came the obsessive and the stalkers, which was part of why Hartnett started to shy away from the industry.

Although far removed from the days of being the type who gets plastered all over peoples’ bedroom walls or mirror, Josh Hartnett still remembers backing away when things got overwhelming. “I just didn’t want my life to be swallowed up by my work. And there was a notion at that time you just kind of give it all up. And you saw what happened to some people back then. They got obliterated by it. I didn’t want that for myself.”

In the first five years of Josh Hartnett’s big screen career, he made twice as many features, most of which centered around his looks (so rarely do the teeny bopper types get recognized for their acting; then again, most shouldn’t): Here on Earth, O, Pearl Harbor, 40 Days and 40 Nights…And then there was The Faculty, which, even as a high school drug dealer battling pod people, he was still the cute factor.

While he did take a break from acting – albeit not a long one, at under two years – he noted just how obsessed some fans got…and he’s not just talking about his target audience. “People’s attention to me at the time was borderline unhealthy…Look, I don’t want to give this a lot of weight. There were incidents. People showed up at my house. People that were stalking me…A guy showed up at one of my premieres with a gun, claiming to be my father. He ended up in prison. There were lots of things. It was a weird time. And I wasn’t going to be grist for the mill.”

With the wackos long subsiding, Josh Hartnett has been on a tear as of late, a mid-life resurrection that has found him appearing in Best Picture winner Oppenheimer, M. Night Shyamalan’s latest Trap and even a one-off spot on The Bear.

What is your favorite Josh Hartnett role? What are your thoughts on his career shift?

Source: The Guardian

About the Author

2570 Articles Published

Mathew is an East Coast-based writer and film aficionado who has been working with JoBlo.com periodically since 2006. When he’s not writing, you can find him on Letterboxd or at a local brewery. If he had the time, he would host the most exhaustive The Wonder Years rewatch podcast in the universe.

Logo

Looks like your ad blocker is on.

×

We rely on ads to keep creating quality content for you to enjoy for free.

Please support our site by disabling your ad blocker.

Continue Without Making Any Changes

Choose your Ad Blocker

  • Adblock Plus
  • Adblock
  • Adguard
  • Ad Remover
  • Brave
  • Ghostery
  • uBlock Origin
  • uBlock
  • UltraBlock
  • Other
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock Plus icon
  2. Click the large blue toggle for this website
  3. Click refresh
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock icon
  2. Under "Pause on this site" click "Always"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Adguard icon
  2. Click on the large green toggle for this website
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ad Remover icon
  2. Click "Disable on This Website"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the orange lion icon
  2. Click the toggle on the top right, shifting from "Up" to "Down"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ghostery icon
  2. Click the "Anti-Tracking" shield so it says "Off"
  3. Click the "Ad-Blocking" stop sign so it says "Off"
  4. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock Origin icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the UltraBlock icon
  2. Check the "Disable UltraBlock" checkbox
  3. Marque la casilla de verificación "Desactivar UltraBlock"
  1. Please disable your Ad Blocker

If the prompt is still appearing, please disable any tools or services you are using that block internet ads (e.g. DNS Servers).