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Josh Hartnett reveals shocking incident that caused him to leave Hollywood

It's a great time to be Hartnett fans, but ahead of M. Night Shyamalan's Trap, Josh Hartnett revealed a horrific incident that almost caused him to leave Hollywood altogether.

After notable performances in “Oppenheimer” and the Netflix series “Black Mirror,” it’s safe to say that Josh Hartnett is truly back.

This summer he returns to the big screen in the horror film “Trap,” a new movie from the pen of “Signs” and “The Sixth Sense” genius M. Night Shyamalan.

According to an interview with The Guardian, Hartnett did not believe he would return to Hollywood at times due to a series of shocking stalking incidents.

“The attention people were giving me at the time was borderline unhealthy,” Hartnett explained his retirement 20 years ago.

“There were incidents. People showed up at my house. People stalking me. At one of my premieres, a guy showed up with a gun and claimed to be my father. He ended up in jail.

“There were a lot of things. It was a strange time. And I didn't want to be grist to people's mill.”

At the time, Harnett was only 27 years old and had just starred in films such as Sin City and The Black Dahlia. He took a 15-month break from acting to refocus.

“I just didn’t want my life to be consumed by my work,” he added.

“And back then there was the idea that you just had to give up everything. And you saw what happened to some people back then. They were destroyed by it. I didn't want that for myself.”

Hartnett now lives in Hampshire, UK, with his wife Tamsin Egerton (you may remember her from 2007's St. Trinians) and their four children.

But why does Trap feel like the right role now? “Maybe it's my age,” Hartnett argues. “I could give a million examples of actors who have become more interesting as they've gotten older. You can't stay an ingénue forever, can you?”

Check out more new movies and new movies streaming this month, plus learn about the best horror movies available on Prime Video.

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