Hollywood star Josh Duhamel has shed some light on why he and superstar Fergie divorced in 2019, admitting that their split was mostly due to their different outlooks on life.
The “Life as We Know It” actor, 53, who was married to the “Fergalicious” singer from 2009 to 2019, candidly opened up about the reasoning behind their split.
While speaking on the March 2 episode of the “Skinny Confidential” podcast, Duhamel admitted that the former couple’s breakup ultimately came down to their differing views of the world.
“We’re very different. Fergie and I, we have different views of the world. And that’s OK,” he said.
The actor, who tied the knot with Audra Mari in 2022, insisted that he has “no regrets” about his marriage to Fergie, noting that they are now amicable and successfully co-parent their son, Axl Jack Duhamel, 12.
“She’s a great mom. [She’s] very kind, very nonconfrontational—thank God—so we have a good relationship. She and Audra have a great relationship,” he said of his ex.
Duhamel, who also shares son Shepherd Lawrence Duhamel, 2, with Mari, previously opened up about the end of his romance with Fergie.
In 2023, he confessed that he never “got comfortable” with her fame.
“It was a lot. I missed the simplicity of who I really am,” he said.
That same year, while on SiriusXM’s “The Jess Cagle Show,” he gushed, “Fergie is an amazing woman. She really is. She’s taken Audra in, and it could be much worse. That’s the thing, you never know how these things are going to go.”
Back in 2018, Fergie told Entertainment Tonight that Duhamel is a “good co-parenting partner.”
“We’re all love, and we love each other. We’re all cool and just a family,” she said.
Duhamel now enjoys a private life with Mari and Shepard in his “doomsday cabin,” which he previously revealed didn’t have plumbing for years.
The actor lives in an off-grid haven in Minnesota’s Land of 10,000 Lakes, having turned his back on the glamour of Hollywood to enjoy the little things in life—including spending time with his kids.
He previously opened up about his secluded sanctuary in a wide-ranging interview with Country Living, revealing that nature has helped “ground” him to what’s important.
“These days, there’s so much anger in the world, and I think it’s because people are on their phones, getting caught up in whatever they’re being fed through their devices as opposed to being outside connecting with the world,” he explained. “Nature helps ground you to what’s important.”
Although the cabin has acted as a secluded sanctuary for Duhamel, it hasn’t come without its flaws.
Duhamel told the outlet that building the property caused them plenty of issues and left them without plumbing for the “longest time.”
“We were basically homesteading the first 12 years. For the longest time, we didn’t have plumbing. We were using outhouses and washing dishes in the lake,” he admitted.
Over the years, Duhamel has upgraded his cabin with a slew of amenities, including plumbing. However, it has maintained its rustic charm.
“I feel so connected to it. I didn’t just buy the place, I shaped this place,” he explained. “While we’ve made a lot of improvements, you still feel like you’re roughing it, and I love that.”
In a previous interview with Parade, Duhamel revealed that he built the property because it’s “deep in the woods.”
He added, “The closest store is 40 miles away. Once we get there, it’s really about everybody taking care of each other—making memories, spending time with family and friends. You really get a chance to get back to the basics.
“You’re not consumed by all these other distractions. When you’re out there, it’s really about having fun, making sure everybody’s warm, everybody’s got food and water.”
Duhamel revealed that it was his dad who found the land on which his off-grid cabin now sits, noting that building the property and spending time there has helped the two of them mend their once-fraught relationship, which was severely affected by Duhamel’s parents’ divorce.
“I’ve become a lot closer to my own parents because of this place, which has been interesting,” he shared. “My dad absolutely loves coming out there to hang out. And we’ve spent more time together in these last five, 10 years than we ever did growing up. I’m much closer to my dad. My mom now loves coming out there. It’s become a real, central hub for all of us.”
Much like his “Ransom Canyon” character, Duhamel explained that he hopes to pass the property down to his two kids, so they can one day enjoy it with their own children. He noted that he’s trying to create something much more important than a real estate asset at the Minnesota property.
Duhamel still holds the keys to a Los Angeles abode that he purchased for $2.65 million in 2018, shortly after his split from first wife Fergie.
The actor put that dwelling on the rental market for $15,000 a month in February 2024. However, the listing was removed in May of that year.