Josh Hartnett: Midwest minor heartthrob to European celeb

Twin Cities native and former teenage heartthrob Josh Hartnett may have found greener pastures overseas. Hartnett is getting a lot of buzz in the UK for his professional stage debut in the theater adaptation of "Rain Man" at the Apollo Theatre on London's West End last Friday. He's also the cover of this month's Vanity Fair in Italy.

We all turned the other way when he starred in Pearl Harbor, but maybe his European popularity will have us claiming him as our own once again. Hartnett and stage co-star Adam Godley can't possibly compete with movie counterparts Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, but the performance is raking in positive reviews. Hartnett plays the disinherited hustler Charlie Babbitt, as he speeds across the United States with his kidnapped autistic brother played by Godley.

London's Telegraph: "Miraculously, this version... works superbly. Indeed, I was more moved and amused by the show than the film."

And did Hartnett live up to his heart-wrenching performance in Pearl Harbor? Is he more than just theatrical viagra? "His initially monotonous performance of belligerent anger grows in confidence and depth. The scene when the two estranged brothers recognise and remember each other is beautifully played."

Right on. He's come a long way from his stint as Huck Finn in the Youth Performance Company's production of Tom Sawyer.