Josh Hartnett's 10 Best Movies, Ranked

Summary

• Josh Hartnett’s big 2023 comeback showcases his range and screen presence in major Hollywood productions Oppenheimer and Black Mirror.
• Hartnett’s standout roles in Sin City, 30 Days of Night, and Wrath of Man prove his talent in diverse genres like action and horror.
• Lesser-known gems like Oh Lucy! and Mozart and the Whale highlight Hartnett’s ability to excel in more intimate and character-driven films.

One of the most notable young actors of the late 1990s and 2000s, Josh Hartnett has gone on to appear in more than 50 films and television series. The 45-year-old actor made a big comeback to the Hollywood spotlight in 2023 after taking an extended hiatus during which Hartnett mostly took smaller acting roles in independent and foreign movies to spend more time with his family in Surrey, England. Hartnett appeared in several major 2023 productions, including Oppenheimer and Black Mirror season 6.

Hartnett rose to prominence after making his feature film debut in 1998’s Halloween H20: 20 Years Later as John, the son of Jamie Lee Curtis’ iconic Laurie Strode character. He would then appear in several major film productions throughout the late ’90s and early 2000s including Michael Bay’s notable 2001 blockbuster Pearl Harbor, the romantic comedy 40 Days and 40 Nights, and the 2004 mystery/drama Wicker Park. While he stepped away from the spotlight for a while, Hartnett’s crowd-pleasing return has led people to revisit his best movies.

10 Sin City (2005)

As The Salesman

Sin City is one of the most aesthetically innovative movies of the 21st century and stars an incredible cast that includes Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, and many others. The adaptation of Frank Miller’s comic book series is an anthology movie within the titular city filled with nefarious and brutal characters. Josh Harnett appears in a brief but memorable role as The Salesman, featured in only two scenes that bookend the movie.

Josh Hartnett’s opening scene of
Sin City
was shot as a test by Robert Rodriguez to show his vision for the movie (via

Wired

).

The film is truly a one-of-a-kind viewing experience that should be seen by all fans of the action/comic book genre, and is often referred to as one of the best cinematic graphic novel adaptations of all time. Director Robert Rodriguez’s adoration of the source material is quite apparent as he lovingly recreates the frames of the comic books as if they have literally come to life on the screen. Sin CIty is filled with memorable characters, gruesome violence, and a wickedly dark sense of humor.

9 30 Days Of Night (2007)

As Eben Oleson

While Josh Hartnett confirmed he turned down Superman earlier in his career, the actor didn’t fully avoid comic book movies. A couple of years after Sin City, he returned to the genre for the adaptation of 30 Days of Night. Hartnett plays protagonist Eben Oleson, the lawman in a remote Alaskan town that is sent into 30 straight days of darkness. This sets the community up to be the perfect feeding ground for a pack of vicious and sadistic vampires who descend on the locals.

The unique setting is one of the reasons why 30Days of Night is one of the most memorable vampire horror movies in the past 15 years. The inescapable dread of the heroes trapped in permanent darkness is a great setup for this kind of story. The movie also features some truly terrifying cinematic vampires along with brutal and bloody violence. Hartnett makes for a great grounded hero who is brave but also in over his head.

8 Wrath Of Man (2021)

As Dave “Boy Sweat” Hancock

Wrath of Man was met with a lot of excitement for being the first collaboration of Jason Statham and Guy Ritchie in over 15 years. However, it was also notable for being part of Josh Hartnett’s return to Hollywood. The movie stars Statham as a mysterious man who takes a job driving an armored truck. But when he proves himself to be more than a group of would-be thieves counted on, it reveals that he might have some motivations of his own.

The movie itself is a gripping crime thriller that is different from Ritchie and Statham’s other movies together.

Hartnett makes a welcome return as Dave “Boy Sweat” Hancock, a somewhat obnoxious fellow driver in Statham’s company. While it is a smaller supporting role, Hartnett gets a satisfying arc as the previously cowardly Dave gets a chance to step up and be heroic in the climax. The movie itself is a gripping crime thriller that is different from Ritchie and Statham’s other movies together but works as an homage to the films of directors like Michael Mann and Walter Hill.

7 Mozart And The Whale (2005)

As Donald Morton

The 2005 drama Mozart and the Whale is one of Josh Hartnett’s most underrated performances that truly demonstrated his range as an actor. Hartnett and costar Radha Mitchell play two people with ASD (referred to in the movie as Asperger’s Syndrome) who fall in love and form a powerful yet tumultuous relationship. Hartnett excels in one of his most complicated and challenging roles, which is wrapped around an inspirational and heartwarming unconventional love story.

While
Mozart and the Whale
was a much smaller film that didn’t nearly get the same attention as the acclaimed Tom Cruise-Dustin Hoffman vehicle, many critics suggested that it was a more nuanced and grounded portrait of its characters.

The movie was written by Ron Bass, who won an Oscar for writing Rain Man. While Mozart and the Whale was a much smaller film that didn’t nearly get the same attention as the acclaimed Tom Cruise-Dustin Hoffman vehicle, many critics suggested that it was a more nuanced and grounded portrait of its characters. The result is a unique and complicated romance story that is elevated by the performances of its lead actors.

6 The Faculty (1998)

As Zeke Tyler

Josh Hartnett broke out in Hollywood with horror movies, but while Halloween: H20 was his high-profile debut, The Faculty is his best offering from the genre. The movie was Hartnett’s first collaboration with Sin City director Robert Rodriguez. It centers on a group of high school students from different social circles who band together when they uncover a plot suggesting their teachers and school staff members have been replaced by dangerous aliens.

Scream
writer Kevin Williamson rewrote the script.

The Faculty is a purely fun and entertaining cinematic experience that is even better to watch today than it was when it came out 25 years ago because of the added retrospective layer of ’90s nostalgia. The film feels like the Scream version of an alien invasion movie with a cool youthful energy and self-aware sense of humor that doesn’t take away from the thrills. The young cast is a lot of fun, including Elijah Wood and Jordana Brewster, but Hartnett steals the show as Zeke Tyler, the school bad boy turned hero.

5 Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

As Slevin Kelevra

Lucky Number Slevin saw Josh Hartnett step into the lead role in a star-studded crime story filled with twists and turns. Hartnett stars as Slevin, a smart-mouthed young man who is mistaken for someone who owes money to two rival gangsters. Each of these dangerous crime figures offers to wipe the slate clean if Slevin assassinates the other.

The highly stylized film from director Paul McGuigan still holds up today as a fast-paced thriller with fun elements of a modern film noir. Hartnett shines in the lead role, mixing a charming sense of humor with a man out of his element. He is joined by some big-name talents, including Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, and Ben Kingsley. It makes for a gripping ride from beginning to end while also having a slick sense of humor, all building to a conclusion that ties everything together with a very satisfying twist.

4 Oh Lucy! (2017)

As John Woodruff

Oh Lucy! is arguably one of Hartnett’s lesser-known films, but it actually utilizes his character in a unique and engaging way. Set in Tokyo, Oh Lucy! tells the story of a disillusioned woman who finds a new life when she takes on an alter-ego through her English learning class and falls in love with her instructor. Hartnett plays the teacher named John who suddenly disappears, forcing the newly formed Lucy to figure out what happened to him in this magnificent comedy-drama.

While Hartnett made a strong comeback in Hollywood recently, Oh Lucy is a perfect reminder that he was still making great movies even if they were not reaching the mainstream as much as his past projects. It is a quirky and charming film that made a decent splash despite its small size. Lead actor Shinobu Terajima earned a Best Female Lead nomination from the Film Independent Spirit Awards while writer-director Atsuko Hirayanagi was nominated for Best First Feature.

3 The Virgin Suicides (1999)

As Trip Fontaine

The Virgin Suicides was one of the movies that helped Hartnett earn his reputation as a teen heartthrob early in his career, despite the dark nature of the story. The compelling yet tragic film was the first directorial effort by Sofia Coppola. It stars Kirsten Dunst as one of several daughters in a strict household where their parents’ attempts to protect them from the mature world lead to tragedy. Hartnett has a supporting role as Trip Fontaine, the popular boy in school.

The coming-of-age teen drama has become a cult classic of adolescent angst and is a stunning debut from Coppola. The Virgin Suicides has a dreamlike quality that adds to the haunting nature of the story and where it ends up. Dunst was able to transition into her era of serious movie roles while Hartnett brought a lot of charm and nuance to a character who could have been one-dimensional.

2 Black Hawk Down (2001)

As SSG Matt Eversmann

In the same year that Josh Hartnett starred in the critically-reviled war movie Pearl Harbor, the actor also starred in one of the most acclaimed war movies of all time.Black Hawk Down depicts the incredible true story of a tragic 1993 United States military operation in Somalia gone terribly wrong. Hartnett stars as Eversmann, one of the main soldiers who gets caught in a vicious gunfight that destroys two American Black Hawk helicopters.

Hartnett’s costars Tom Sizemore, Ewen Bremner, William Fichtner, and Kim Coates all appeared with him in Pearl Harbor in the same year.

The intense Ridley Scott film is full of gripping action sequences and brilliant cinematography and sound effects and also stars an ensemble cast that includes Ewan McGregor, Tom Hardy, Orlando Bloom, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau. Hartnett is very much the heart of the movie as a soldier who is fighting for what he believes is a just cause only to be disillusioned by the poor leadership, yet heartened by the strength of his fellow soldiers. Scott throws the audience right into the warzone, which makes for a visceral experience.

1 Oppenheimer (2023)

As Ernest Lawrence

While Josh Hartnett had been gradually appearing in high-profile movies in the 2020s, Oppenheimer was the movie that truly cemented his Hollywood comeback. Christopher Nolan’s Best Picture-winning epic stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer in an exploration of his work to build the atomic bomb, his guilt over its use during World War II, and the aftermath of his career. Hartnett plays a pivotal role in the epic film as fellow physicist Ernest Lawrence, a friend and colleague of Oppenheimer’s.

Nolan creates an engrossing and layered examination of a complex historical figure and the fascinating story he was a part of. It is a compelling look at the collaboration and conflict between science and the military, a thrilling political story about the government’s paranoia of communists in America, and a heartbreaking depiction of the downfall of Oppenheimer. While the Oppenheimer cast is a huge star-studded affair, Josh Hartnett shines in the supporting role that reminds audiences of his commanding screen presence.