Actor Josh Duhamel Left Hollywood for North Dakota: ‘Missed the Simplicity’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Actor Josh Duhamel said he moved home to North Dakota because Hollywood “suck[s] the soul out of you.”
“It was just a lot,” the actor said. “I just missed the simplicity of who I really am. I’m just not a guy who is comfortable going to red carpets, doing all the Hollywood stuff. I don’t hate it; I’m better at it now than I was, but I just took me a long time to really feel like I fit in.”
The Hollywood lifestyle “can suck the soul out of you, if you’re not careful,” he added, saying, “I find myself sometimes, when I’m there, that I need to find a healthy outlet to get my hands dirty, to do something that gives me some kind of purpose.”
While on IN DEPTH WITH GRAHAM BENSINGER, the actor explained why he bought a cabin in northern Minnesota.
“It just took me a long time to really feel like I belong, like I fit in. Having this place out here really allows me to get back to that kid that fell in love with nature, fell in love with the outdoors and being creative and just being active,” Duhamel said.
“My buddies and I were living our lives like Huck Finn,” he shared about his childhood. “Our days were spent fishing in the summer and sledding in the winter.”
Duhamel blames the fast-paced, star-studded Hollywood lifestyle as why he and his wife, Fergie, divorced in 2019 after ten years of marriage.
The couple’s separation came from a difference in how they handled the celebrity lifestyle. While Duhamel desired to escape it, Fergie wanted to embrace it.
“We had a great time, but I think we kind of just outgrew each other and had very different interests,” Duhamel said. “The older I got, the more I wanted to come back [to North Dakota]… [but] this is not for her. But I’ve got no hard feelings for it. I truly don’t.”
Duhamel has since married former Miss World America Audra Mari, and their first child is on the way.
Movieguide® previously reported on Duhamel:
In a recent announcement, Disney+ confirmed for fans of THE MIGHTY DUCKS: GAME CHANGERS what they can expect from the upcoming second season.
Emilio Estevez is exiting the show, and TRANSFORMERS star Josh Duhamel will join the cast, though not replacing Estevez’s role as Coach Bombay.
Instead, the actor will be playing Gavin Cole, a former NHL player who runs the summer hockey school the team will be attending in the second season.
In addition to taking on a leading role, Duhamel will also be working behind the camera. He and co-star Lauren Graham (GILMORE GIRLS) will each direct an episode of the show.
