Actor Josh Duhamel is leaving his house in Hollywood behind for a private life in the Midwest.
The 52-year-old actor revealed in an interview with Parade Thursday that he has moved to Minnesota, where he’s building a home and enjoying time with his family, including his wife Audra Mari, and their year-old son, Shepherd. Duhamel also has an 11-year-old son, Axel, with his ex, Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas.
“Part of the reason I built my place out in Minnesota, deep in the woods, is it’s removed from everything,” he told Parade. “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.”
The Safe Haven star added: “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 emphasized that the move “really got [him] back in touch” with reality, which “fulfills the soul in a lot of ways.”
His sons love the property, and are “going to have memories of this place forever,” he said.
His older son, Axel, is “not on his iPad when he’s out there. He’s out there in the boat with me, or he’s playing soccer on the beach, or he’s out there in the woods doing whatever I’m doing. And then I have a little baby who’s going to experience the same thing.”
Duhamel wants to pass the house on to his children one day, so they can share it with their own kids.
“It’s really important to me that they have this,” said the Transformers star. “It’s not just about having all the amenities and all the luxuries that we become so used to. It’s really about family. It’s about legacy.”
The change has also deepened Duhamel’s relationship with his parents as he’s building his home, said the actor.
“My dad absolutely loves coming out there to hang out. 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,” he explained.
The actor has previously revealed that he’s not a fan of living in Hollywood, with the glitz and the glamor.
“I don’t think I ever really got comfortable with all of it,” he said during an appearance on the In Depth with Graham Besinger two years ago. “It was a lot. I just missed the simplicity of who I really am. I’m just not a guy who’s comfortable going to red carpets and doing all the Hollywood stuff.”
He added: “I don’t hate it, I’m better at it now, but it just took me a long time to really feel like I belong, like I fit in. You know Hollywood and LA, that whole lifestyle, can suck the life out of you if you’re not careful.”
During his interview with Parade, he also shared where he stands with ex-wife Fergie, whom he divorced in 2019. Duhamel said he considers himself still a “work in progress” after their breakup. But he said the singer is still a big part of his life since they co-parent their son, and they have “very little conflict.”
