Josh Duhamel makes rare comment on his 21-year age gap with wife Audra Mari

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Josh Duhamel is reflecting on the 21-year age gap with his wife, Audra Mari, after an unexpected realization tied to a family photo during a Monday, July 13, appearance on 'The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler' podcast.

The 53-year-old actor shared how looking back at an old picture made him recognize that Mari, 32, is the exact same age as his youngest sister, Cassidy. The revelation sparked a humorous response, as their age difference had never been viewed that way before by him.

Josh Duhamel reflects on age-gap realization with Audra Mari

Recalling the moment on the podcast, Duhamel explained that his youngest sister was born when he was already 21 years old and attending Minot State University.

“Cassidy came along, and I was playing football at Minot State University,” he shared. “Warming up on the field. I remember looking up at the stands, and I saw my mom and had this bump. And I’m like, ‘What the— Is my mom pregnant?’ I’m 21 years old ... and she’s having another baby.”

He went on to remember a photograph from that time, “There’s a picture of me holding Cassidy as a 21-year-old young man with this little bitty infant. I looked at the photo, and I looked at my wife, and I said, ‘You know, you and Cassidy are exactly the same age.’”

The realization led to a joke that drew laughs from host Ryan Sickler. “I am officially too old for you,” he joked, adding, “They’re literally like months apart in age. I never looked at it like that until I saw that photo. I was like, ‘Wait a second.’”

Duhamel and the former Miss North Dakota USA married in September 2022 in North Dakota, after dating for roughly three years. The actor previously shared how their relationship began during a September 2023 appearance on 'Live with Kelly and Mark'.

He revealed that he first connected with Mari by sending her a direct message after she had “won some pageants” in North Dakota. He admitted initially being not sure a relationship would work because of their 20-plus-year age gap, before adding, “We started dating and, you know, here we are, five years later, with a baby on the way. She’s a pretty amazing girl, she really is.”

Josh Duhamel embraces becoming a girl dad as he and Audra Mari welcome second baby

Duhamel and Mari, who are already parents to son Shepherd, two, welcomed their second child together, daughter Rocca de Leon Duhamel, in May 2026. The actor announced the birth on Instagram on May 16, sharing a series of family photos and writing, “Rocca de Leon Duhamel our baby girl is here.”

The photo carousel included images of the newborn sleeping, he celebrating with a bottle of champagne beside her bassinet, the couple posing together, Shepherd meeting his baby sister, and the infant resting against Mari's chest in the hospital.

She had previously announced her pregnancy through a black-and-white Instagram photo series, captioning it, “Adding a little girl to our story. We can’t wait to meet you.”

Duhamel is also father to 12-year-old son Axl, whom he shares with ex-wife Fergie. Before welcoming Rocca, he told Yahoo News he was excited to become a girl dad for the first time. “Oh, she’s going to have me wrapped around her finger,” he shared, adding, “I can already tell.”

Fergie, who was married to Duhamel from 2009 to 2017 before their divorce was finalized in 2019, also reacted to the couple's baby announcement by commenting two pink bow emojis and two pink heart emojis.

More recently, Duhamel reflected on his past marriage during a March 25 appearance on 'The Megyn Kelly Show.' “It was a huge sort of shift because she was a massive star at the time, and it was a big adjustment for me, if I'm being honest,” he said.