Josh Duhamel Shares What Led to His Divorce From Fergie

Josh Duhamel is opening up about his past while looking ahead to his future. The 50-year-old actor got candid about the end of his marriage to Fergie in a new interview, addressing how the former couple has navigated their public split while co-parenting their son. 

“Great girl,” the Safe Haven star says of his ex-wife in an interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger. “I think we both agree that we’re very different and we made an awesome kid. We get along great and we get to raise him without any acrimony.” 

Josh and Fergie — born Stacy Ann Ferguson — wed in 2009 and welcomed their first child, Axl Jack, in 2013. The pair separated in 2017 and, two years later, filed for and finalized their divorce. Josh went on to marry fellow North Dakota native Audra Mari in 2022, and the couple is currently expecting a child together. 

The All My Children alum says that he’s “made peace with that part of my life,” referring to his relationship with Fergie, but suggests that his desire to distance himself from a Hollywood lifestyle played a role in their breakup. 

“She and I have a great relationship. We’re both raising that boy together. And there wasn’t anything wrong with it,” he says of their marriage. “We had a great time, but I think we kind of outgrew each other and had very different interests. And the older I got, the more I wanted to come back here [to North Dakota]. And this is not for her. But I’ve got no hard feelings for it. I truly don’t. I’m very lucky that she’s a kind human.” 

Josh notes that “all the Hollywood stuff” took a toll on him. 

“I’m just not a guy who is comfortable, you know, going to red carpets,” he shares. “I don’t hate it, I’m better at it now than I was, but it just took me a really long time to really feel like I belonged, like I fit in.” 

He adds, “Hollywood and L.A. and that whole lifestyle can suck the soul out of you if you’re not careful. And, you know, 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 a purpose. I’ve had a lot of success there, it’s afforded me a lot of things, [I’m] very grateful for that, but it doesn’t mean I have to live that lifestyle.” 

As they continue to work together to raise their 10-year-old son, Josh says that he and Fergie remain steadfastly committed to cultivating a healthy and loving environment as co-parents.

“We both had parents who got divorced, who didn’t get along so great, and didn’t want to do the same thing to our kid,” he admits. “We knew that whatever differences we had, we had to figure that out and, you know, be like a positive example for Axl.” 

Agreeing with Bensinger that it’s “easier said than done,” Duhamel notes that “we both had good examples of what not to do.” 

“We both wanted the same thing and that is to create an easy place for him that isn’t awkward or uncomfortable or pressure filled,” he says. “That’s it.”

As Josh prepares to welcome a new baby with his 29-year-old wife, who joined him for a portion of the interview, the actor says that their love of family and lake life are at the core of their connection. “Also, she just brings a real structure and she loves my boy,” he gushes. “She’s gonna be a great mother. Those are the reasons I love her. She has a really great little soul, she really does.” 

For her part, Audra says she fell head over heels after seeing Josh as a dad. 

“I just love him,” she says of her beau. “He’s the best dad. That’s probably  No. 1, I saw in him and I got to see that — which is a positive before doing it, because he is a dad already.”

Both Josh and Audra agree that they hope to “have a few” more children together. 

When ET spoke to Fergie in June 2018, she opened up about what it’s like co-parenting with Josh.

“We split it up really balanced,” she said. “We’re all love and we love each other. We’re all cool and just a family. I have a good co-parenting partner, so we work it out.”

Josh echoed his ex’s words, telling ET days later that they “get along great.”

“We just love our kid and want the best for him,” he said. “Fergie and I get along great. We have a lot of love and there’s no reason to not do the best we can to raise our kid. He’s No. 1.”

More recently, ET was with Josh last month where he gushed over becoming a new dad again.

“I’m very excited about it, I really am,” the Buddy Games host told ET. “And so is she, so is my son. We’re very lucky and all we can hope for is a healthy baby.”

While Josh said he’s certain that Axl will be a “good big brother” to the new baby and, in fact, Axl’s already has a name in mind for the baby boy. 

“Gary,” the actor revealed with a laugh, noting that he’s got a compromise lined up: “We’ll get a dog, we’ll name the dog Gary.”

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