Josh Hartnett Continues Making Notable Acting Appearances Amidst His Sporadic Breaks From Acting

When a young actor has a breakout role, you'll usually see them stick around for the long haul. Whether it's for their skills in the profession or even based on charisma alone, an actor who makes a good impression will typically be seen everywhere. But even high-profile celebrity actors can experience burnout, leading them to take significant breaks throughout their careers. Such is the case with 44-year-old Josh Hartnett.

During the early days of Josh's career, he was highly sought after as a young heartthrob with some serious acting chops. He first appeared in a Hollywood feature with Halloween H20: 20 Years Later playing opposite Jamie Lee Curtis and would go on to several other notable projects.

However, the actor has also stepped out of the limelight on several occasions. What is Josh Hartnett up to now? In case you were worried, he's still acting.

Once upon a time, you couldn't even get away from Josh when it came to Hollywood movies. Following his award-nominated feature film debut in the 1998 Halloween sequel, he would go on to star in an almost-absurd amount of movies. In 2001 alone, Josh appeared in six separate films and projects, including Black Hawk Down and Pearl Harbor.

Some of his other memorable roles from the early to mid-2000s include 2002's 40 Days and 40 Nights, 2005's Sin City, Lucky Number Slevin, and 2008's August, just to name a few.

Yet despite his massive popularity during this time, he's since lessened his appearances to a considerable degree. It's understandable, considering how many films he was attached to between 1998 and 2011. At a certain point, time for himself became an emotional necessity.

In a 2017 interview with The Huffington Post, Josh described his experience with stepping away from what he called "an unhealthy environment."

"To get so consumed with chasing a goal that doesn't necessarily have to define you is a fool's errand and I wanted to have a healthy perspective on it. Not only on the fame itself, but the pursuit of wealth and the pursuit of surface values."

While he's no longer on a hectic work schedule, he does continue to appear in media. From 2014 to 2016, he starred in the popular Showtime series, Penny Dreadful. He also appeared in the Kevin Hart comedy, Die Hart, on The Roku Channel.

As recently as 2022, Josh starred in a 4-part miniseries called The Fear Index that aired on Sky. In 2023, he'll appear in another starring role in the spy comedy, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, playing opposite Jason Statham and Aubrey Plaza. The film will be released in the United States on March 3. He also stars in the upcoming Christopher Nolan film, Oppenheimer, due out in theaters on July 21.

Josh Hartnett may not be as busy as he once was, and that's mostly by design. Luckily for fans of his, he has far from fully stepped out of the limelight.