Josh Hartnett
Biography
Joshua Daniel Hartnett, born July 21, 1978 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, is an American actor and producer. He first reached audiences in 1997 portraying Michael Fitzgerald in the crime television series Cracker. Hartnett made his feature‑film debut in 1998, co‑starring with Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, and that same year earned an MTV Movie Award nomination for Best Breakthrough Male Performance. He achieved wider recognition for his role as Captain Danny Walker in Pearl Harbor. Since then he has worked with directors including Ridley Scott, Brian De Palma, Robert Rodriguez, Tran Anh Hung and Michael Bay, building a career that spans television and film.
Career overview
Joshua Daniel Hartnett was born on July 21, 1978 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. He began his screen career in television, gaining his first public notice in 1997 when he portrayed Michael Fitzgerald in the crime series Cracker. The following year marked his entry into feature films; Hartnett co‑starred with Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, which served as his film debut. That same year he earned an MTV Movie Award nomination for Best Breakthrough Male Performance, acknowledging his emerging presence in cinema.
Hartnett’s profile rose sharply after he was cast as Captain Danny Walker in the World War II drama Pearl Harbor, a role that brought him broader fame. Since that breakthrough, he has worked with a range of prominent directors, including Ridley Scott, Brian De Palma, Robert Rodriguez, Trần Anh Hung and Michael Bay, appearing in projects that span various genres. In addition to acting, Hartnett has taken on producing responsibilities, contributing to the development of film and television productions. His career, spanning more than two decades, reflects a progression from early television work to notable collaborations with internationally recognized filmmakers.
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Frequent co-stars
Career timeline
Full filmography
- Verity (2026) as Jeremy Crawford
- Fight or Flight (2025) as Lucas Reyes
- Trap (2024) as Cooper
- Oppenheimer (2023) as Ernest Lawrence
- Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre (2023) as Danny Francesco
- Die Hart (2023) as Josh
- The Bear (2022) as Frank
- The Fear Index (2022) as Alex Hoffman
- Wrath of Man (2021) as Boy Sweat Dave
- Exterminate All the Brutes (2021) as American Colonist / Belgian Colonist
- Ida Red (2021) as Wyatt Walker
- Die Hart (2020) as Josh Hartnett
- Paradise Lost (2020) as Yates Forsythe
- Target Number One (2020) as Victor Malarek
- Valley of the Gods (2020) as John Ecas
- Bonsoir bonsoir! (2019) as Self
- Inherit the Viper (2019) as Kip Conley
- She's Missing (2019) as Ren
- Eli Roth's History of Horror (2018) as Self
- Oh Lucy! (2018) as John
- Revisiting The Virgin Suicides (2018) as Self
- The Ottoman Lieutenant (2017) as Jude Gresham
- 6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain (2017) as Eric LeMarque
- 6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain (2017) Producer
- The Lovers (2015) as James / Jay
- Wild Horses (2015) as KC Briggs
- The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (2014) as Self
- Penny Dreadful (2014) as Ethan Chandler
- Parts Per Billion (2014) as Len
- Drunk History (2013) as Clark Gable
- Gogglebox (2013) as Self
- Blood Is Thicker Than Water: The Making of Halloween H20 (2013) as Self
- Black Mirror (2011) as David Ross
- Girl Walks Into a Bar (2011) as Sam Salazar
- Stuck Between Stations (2011) as Paddy
- Bunraku (2010) as The Drifter
- I Come with the Rain (2009) as Kline
- August (2008) as Tom Sterling
- August (2008) Producer
- The Graham Norton Show (2007) as Self
- 30 Days of Night (2007) as Eben Oleson
- Resurrecting the Champ (2007) as Erik Kenman Jr.
- Stories USA (2007) as Gianni (segment "Member")
- Lucky Number Slevin (2006) as Slevin
- The Black Dahlia (2006) as Bucky Bleichert
- Sin City (2005) as The Man
- Mozart and the Whale (2005) as Donald Morton
- Wicker Park (2004) as Matthew
- Stories of Lost Souls (2004) as The Neighbor
- Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2003) as Self
- Lost in Translation (2003) Thanks
- Hollywood Homicide (2003) as Det. K.C. Calden
- V Graham Norton (2002) as Self
- 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002) as Matt Sulivan
- Black Hawk Down (2001) as SSG Matthew Eversmann
- Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (2001) as Self - Guest
- Pearl Harbor (2001) as Danny Walker
- The Same (2001) as The Neighbor
- Blow Dry (2001) as Brian Allen
- O (2001) as Hugo Goulding
- Town & Country (2001) as Tom Stoddard
- Beyond the Movie: Pearl Harbor (2001) as Danny Walker
- Member (2001) as Gianni
- The Virgin Suicides (2000) as Trip Fontaine
- Here on Earth (2000) as Jasper Arnold
- The Making of The Virgin Suicides (2000) as Self
- The Faculty (1998) as Zeke Tyler
- Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) as John
- Unmasking the Horror (1998)
- Debutante (1998) as Bill
- Cracker (1997) as Michael Fitzgerald
- The Daily Show (1996) as Self
- Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993) as Self - Guest
- The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992)
- LIVE with Kelly and Mark (1988) as Self - Guest
- Saturday Night Live (1975) as Self - Host
- The Oscars (1953) as Self
- Today (1952) as Himself - Guest Star
- Below as Calvin Penney
- Below Executive Producer
- The Long Home
- White Lies
- All Day & All Night as Billy Davies
- All Day & All Night Producer
- The Last Draw of Jack of Hearts as Jack