Josh Duhamel

Josh Duhamel is 53 years old as of 3 November 2026. He was born on 14 November 1972 in Minot, North Dakota, so he turns 54 in eleven days [1]. This autumn he is back in the news because the second season of his Netflix drama Ransom Canyon came out on 23 July 2026, after a spring in which he directed a comedy and became a father for the third time [5] [3].

Early life in Minot

Joshua David Duhamel grew up in Minot, in the north of North Dakota [1]. His parents divorced when he was in fourth grade. He and his three sisters stayed with their mother, and he remained close to both parents [1].

Sport came before acting. Duhamel was a quarterback at Minot State University, and he studied biology because he planned to become a dentist [1]. He left just short of graduating and finished the degree ten years later [1]. Minot State later inducted him into its Hall of Fame, in 2016 [2]. He also co-owned a restaurant in North Dakota, 10 North Main [2].

The break: modeling, then a soap

In 1995 Duhamel moved to northern California and started modeling [1]. Two years later, in 1997, he was named male model of the year at a convention [1]. TV Guide's profile names the body as the International Modeling and Talent Association [2]. The same profile lists an appearance in Christina Aguilera's "Genie in a Bottle" video in 1999 [2].

The acting break came in 1999, when he joined the daytime soap All My Children as Leo du Pres [1]. The role earned him a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor [1]. The sources disagree on the year: Biography.com places the win in 2003, while TV Guide lists it as 2002 [1] [2]. Fox News also says the role won him a Daytime Emmy, without giving a year [3].

From Las Vegas to Transformers

In 2003 Duhamel joined the NBC series Las Vegas, which ran for five seasons [1]. He played Danny McCoy, the head of security [3]. A year later he appeared in the film Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! [1].

Film became his main work in 2007, when he starred in Transformers [1]. He played Capt. William Lennox in Michael Bay's franchise, and the sequels followed in 2009 and 2011 [1] [3]. Fox News calls Lennox the part he became widely known for [3].

After that he moved between romantic comedies and dramas. Biography.com lists The Romantics and Life as We Know It in 2010, then Safe Haven in 2013, when the film Scenic Route also premiered at SXSW [1]. Fox News adds When in Rome and New Year's Eve to the list [3]. Later credits in the same Biography.com timeline include You're Not You (2014), Bravetown and Lost in the Sun (2015), the mini-series 11.22.63 (February 2016) and Misconduct (2016) [1].

Best-known work

Year	Title	Role
1999	All My Children	Leo du Pres [1]
2003	Las Vegas (five seasons)	Danny McCoy, head of security [1] [3]
2007	Transformers (sequels 2009, 2011)	Capt. William Lennox [1] [3]
2025	Ransom Canyon (Netflix)	Staten Kirkland, rancher [4]
2026	Preschool	Director and co-lead, one of two fathers [9]

Ransom Canyon

Duhamel's current signature role is Staten Kirkland, a stoic rancher in Netflix's Ransom Canyon. The series follows three ranching families who compete for land in the Texas Hill Country [4]. Minka Kelly plays Quinn O'Grady, who owns the local dance hall. April Blair created the show and runs it, and Duhamel and Dan Angel are executive producers [4].

Season 1 was added to Netflix on 17 April 2025 [6]. By its fourth week it had 183.6 million hours viewed and had charted in 77 countries, according to What's on Netflix [6]. Before any renewal, Duhamel said on a podcast: "I don't know. I feel like it's gonna happen" [6]. Netflix confirmed the second season on 24 June 2025, with filming at Netflix's Albuquerque Studios [4].

Season 2 arrived on 23 July 2026 with eight episodes, down from ten [5]. It picks up six months after season 1. Staten has lost his trustee role and is trying to regain the family's Double K Ranch [5]. Duhamel and Kelly are executive producers, and Patricia Clarkson joins the cast [5]. In a deleted scene published by Netflix, Staten is trying to prove to his father, Sam (Brett Cullen), who took back control of the ranch, that he can handle ranching. Duhamel says Sam never really took an interest in the ranch [7].

Directing Preschool and the next Western

In March 2026 Duhamel directed and starred in the comedy Preschool, which had its premiere at the Fargo Film Festival at the Fargo Theatre on Wednesday, 18 March [8] [9]. He and Michael Socha play two fathers in London who compete for the last place at an elite preschool, and the rivalry draws in both families [9]. The festival also gave him its 2026 Ted M. Larson Award, which it calls its highest honor for contributions to the cinematic arts [8]. Duhamel described the film as "art imitating life", drawn from his experience of getting his two-year-old son into preschool [3].

Fox News reported in May 2026 that he is slated for The Rescue, a Paramount project described as a modern-day Western about a rodeo cowboy whose skills are tested outside the arena. Deadline reported the casting in March 2026, according to Fox [3]. The article frames the cowboy parts as a change from his earlier leading-man roles.

He has also talked about stepping back from Los Angeles. In a 2023 interview with Graham Bensinger he said he "missed the simplicity of who I really am" and that the Hollywood lifestyle "can suck the soul out of you if you're not careful" [3]. In April 2025 he revealed that he had left Los Angeles for an off-grid home in Minnesota, which took 15 years to build [3].

Marriages, children and Fergie

Duhamel married the singer Fergie in 2009 [1]. Their son, Axl Jack, was born in 2013 [1]. The couple announced their separation in September 2017 [1] [11]. Fergie filed for divorce on 31 May 2019, and ET reported on 25 November 2019 that it had been finalized the week before. They agreed to joint legal and physical custody of Axl, who was six at the time [11].

He then married Audra Mari, a former Miss World America, in Fargo, North Dakota, in September 2022 [10] [12]. Entertainment Tonight's report dates the wedding to Saturday, 10 September, though that date is inferred from its publication day. The report also notes that accounts of the venue differed, with photos outside a church and an eyewitness naming a brewery [12].

The couple have a son, Shepherd, and in May 2026 they announced the birth of a daughter, Rocca de Leon Duhamel [3] [10]. Hello! counts Rocca as Duhamel's third child and the couple's second [10]. Axl is now 12 [3].

Net worth and height

Net worth figures for Duhamel circulate widely online, but we did not find an estimate from a named, reliable outlet such as Forbes or Bloomberg, so this page gives none. The same goes for height: the sources we opened do not state it, and listings online disagree.