If you love Widow’s Bay, you’ll be totally gripped by Netflix’s Below

Don't you just love it when one brilliant show ends, and you start looking for another just like it only to find the perfect replacement?

Well, if your Google search history contains the phrase "shows like Widows Bay," Netflix fills the void left by the Apple TV cult series with soon-to-be equally as much of a hit, Below.

Widow's Bay began as a slow burn, word of mouth series that is now deservedly scooping up awards all over the place.

A show that seamlessly blends small-town workplace comedy with folk horror, it's littered with Easter eggs and nods to classic films that defined an era, like Jaws, Psycho, The Shining and more, while the setting is really quite magical.

Even if you haven't seen Widow's Bay (but put it to the top of your watch list if you haven't,) Below is an excellent choice for those people on the lookout for a gripping mystery that combines thriller and horror elements within a small, intriguing town.

Also hailed as a eerie, mythological take on Jaws, Below takes viewers to the remote, close-knit fishing town of Snook's Arm, Newfoundland, which is being terrorised by a mysterious, deep-sea creature.

While Jaws keeps viewers on the edge of their seats with an identifiable creature of the seas, Below builds an atmospheric sense of dread with added terror from the unsettling feeling of an unknown entity hunting just below the surface of the water the town relies on.

Calvin Penney (Josh Hartnett), is one of the Snook's Arm residents fighting to protect his family and community, teaming with marine biologist, Dr. Fonda Howlander (Mackenzie Davis) to find out what the creature with huge tentacles and supernatural abilities really is.

In the same way that shows like Widow's Bay, Castle Rock and Twin Peaks tie in popular folklore with the town and character's stories, Calvin's investigation into the creature's origins brings up similar themes.

Also starring Stranger Things' Charlie Heaton as Calvin's son Wade, Calvin's search not only uncovers long-held island secrets that are connected to his father's unexplained death decades previously, but also draws from real Newfoundland history and maritime mythology in the storytelling.

Also with shows of this genre, the filming location often becomes a character in it's own right.

Rockport, on the Cape Ann peninsula of Massachusetts, served as one of the primary Widow's Bay backdrops, and tourism to the beautiful spot has increased dramatically as a result.

Speaking about how he wanted to recreate in Below a similar atmosphere to Jaws, showrunner Jesse McKeown tells What's On Netflix why he chose Newfoundland as a filming location.

"So much of what strikes me now is the Martha’s Vineyard locals and how much they added to the atmosphere of that movie," he says, adding, "And so, we were all on the same page. We want this. The moment you set foot in Newfoundland, you go, 'It’s all here. We just have to point the camera.'"

He explains, "Newfoundland is in its own time zone. It’s in its own world, basically. It was its own country before.

"Most people in Canada don’t know this, but it was its own country for a long time until it joined Canada and became the 10th province in 1949. So, it’s a very distinct place that has its own sort of self-sufficient vibe."

Below airs on Netflix from October 8.