Josh Duhamel Tells The Inspiring Story Of How He Overcame A 21-Year Age Gap To Start Dating His Model Wife
Josh Duhamel went from hesitation due to a 21-year age gap to happily married.
A 21-year age gap was too much for Josh Duhamel, 53, or so he thought. He wrongly believed prior to meeting her in person that his now-model wife, Audra Mari, 32, was too young for him.
Had he stuck with that notion and not been big enough to admit that he was wrong about the age gap, who knows where he would be? He for sure wouldn’t have the two-year-old son they share.
Josh Duhamel, Audra Mari at the "London Calling" Los Angeles Premiere held at Harmony Gold in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)
Duhamel's inspirational story starts with an invitation to a party at his home. He says that he didn’t have any thoughts about dating the former beauty pageant contestant when he invited her.
"She and I had been in contact because I knew she was from North Dakota, she'd done really, really well in Miss USA. I wasn't even inviting her because I wanted to date her, because she was too young for me, to be honest," Duhamel said during an appearance on The Skinny Confidential podcast.
"I wasn't looking for [that]. I'm not going to be that dude. So I invited her, and she comes to the door, and I'm like, 'Holy shit. [She's] so beautiful."
But it wasn’t Mari's beauty that helped him overcome that age gap apprehension. It was the way she interacted with the kids.
Josh Duhamel Invited The Model As A Guest, Not A Date, But That Changed During The Party
"I remember her taking care of these kids at the party, making sure they had enough, and I was like that reminds me of home and the kind of girl I want to really be with," he admitted.
"And I'd gone through a couple of relationships with girls here in LA, and it just wasn't the same. There's something really wholesome about it and I think that was when I was like, hmm, maybe she's not too young."
Isn't that heartwarming? She's beautiful, she reminds him of home, and she's really wholesome. When you mix all those up into one person, age just becomes a number.
If that doesn’t serve as some inspiration after your first marriage to someone your own age falls apart because, let's face it, you grew apart, then absolutely nothing will.
At the end of the day, we're all just a little bit broken, a little bit hurt, and have wounds half open, but with a little work we can rise up again to the call.