Below Netflix

3 stories Updated for U.S. readers

Mackenzie Davis, who plays marine biologist Fonda Howander in Netflix's Below
Below Netflix · marine biology

Mackenzie Davis’s Character Is Inspired by a Real Newfoundland Marine Biologist

Netflix’s Below draws on real marine science: creator Jesse McKeown says Mackenzie Davis’s character Fonda Howander was inspired by Dr. A...

Oct 12, 2026 3 min read
Josh Hartnett as Calvin Penney aboard a fishing boat in Netflix's Below
Below Netflix · marine biology

The Real Science Expert Who Helped Create Below’s Giant Squid

Meet Dr. Annie Mercier, the Newfoundland marine biologist who fact-checked Netflix’s Below and helped ground its giant squid story in rea...

Oct 12, 2026 3 min read
Giant squid photographed for Smithsonian Ocean's scientific guide to the real animal behind Below's fictional sea monster
Below Netflix · marine biology

The Science Behind Below’s Iceberg Monster Is Surprisingly Real

Netflix’s Below draws on real giant-squid biology, deep-sea mysteries and climate science—but the iceberg monster itself is fiction. Here...

Oct 11, 2026 3 min read