It’s all or nothing with Josh Duhamel: Either jeans and a T-shirt, or a Dolce & Gabbana suit
With his rugged good looks and easy demeanor, Josh Duhamel has a boy-next-door familiarity. Slouched unassumingly in a booth in an old-school diner in Brentwood, the actor — whose film “Lost in the Sun” is set to open Nov. 6 — casually chats about sports with the owner, as he orders his usual gyro. The 42-year-old is wearing a plain blue Armani T-shirt, G-Star jeans, Adidas tennis shoes and a Sub Pop trucker cap with a flag decal that he picked up recently at the Seattle airport. The waitress mentions that Duhamel’s 2-year-old son, Axl, was in the restaurant earlier that morning with his nanny, and cried when he had to leave.
“He was doing this this morning when we were leaving the park,” says Duhamel, jutting out his lower lip. “Ferg [Duhamel’s wife, the singer Fergie] does it too, when she’s about to cry. He knows how to work us now. At bedtime, he’s got a bag of tricks, so he can just extend a little bit longer. Last night, it was ‘Can I get a massage?’ And then ‘Snuggle?’ What am I going to say to that? ‘I’m not going to snuggle you?’”
Duhamel chatted with us about being a dad in Hollywood, his style and more.
So you started out as a model?
I did that for maybe two years. It was such a short blip in my life, but it was important because it was sort of a transition from the middle of nowhere in North Dakota [Duhamel hails from Minot] to Los Angeles.... But modeling wasn’t nearly as glamorous as I thought it was going to be. But I got to go to Milan. I was a fit model in the Prada showroom.
What’s your go-to uniform?
Pretty much this. Jeans and a T-shirt. You know, a T-shirt and jeans is not as simple as it seems. I probably have 70 pairs of jeans and I wear about three of them. And T-shirts are important. They’ve got to be the right T-shirts. My wife tells me that I should be a little more conscious of fashion, but I feel like this is basically what I’ve been wearing since I was a kid. If I put anything else on, it’s a suit — a Calvin Klein or Varvatos or Dolce & Gabbana suit. It’s all or nothing. I don’t have any sort of in-between style. I could try to be Kanye, but I would just look like I’m trying way too hard.
Do you work with a stylist?
I’ve worked with Sam McMillen for years. Ferg and I count on her. Everything that I have is pretty much from her. We do fittings, for a photo shoot or whatever, and I end up buying stuff because I never go shopping.
Is Fergie involved in your style?
Only if we’re going someplace where it sort of matters, like a nice dinner. I have to check to see how she’s dressed, so I can sort of dress in the same ballpark. Because I don’t want to go out looking like this, if she’s looking fancy. I’ll just run it past her, like “How’s this?” She’s very diplomatic about it. She’ll say, “The shoes are OK. Do you have another option, maybe, that I could see?” That’s her way of saying, “You need to change your shoes!”
How did image help you get into character for “Lost In The Sun,” since you play a bad-guy kidnapping crook?
I went to a dentist and had silver teeth made, so I had a silver tooth here and one over here. I wanted the guy to have this gnarly look, like he’s seen better days.... I wanted the hair to be not slicked back, but matted, pressed down, as if he hadn’t washed it, to keep it out of his face. And we grew the beard long and kept the gray to make him as [grizzled] as we could. It’s always a struggle, because the people making the movie want you to look pretty enough, so people want to see it … but my mantra now is that I want to do things that people don’t expect.
You had a mullet in high school, a mohawk in “Scenic Route,” and there’s talk about your hair’s perfectly messed-up texture. Any favorite products?
Me?! [laughs] Well, there’s a lot more gray than there used to be. Thank God for hair coloring. If I have to color it, I will, but mostly I just let it go these days. I use Kevin Murphy’s Night Rider [texture paste].
What five items are always in your dopp kit?
My toothbrush and toothpaste, those little toothpick things with the floss on the ends, Elizabeth Arden Eight-Hour Cream and clove oil. It’s supposed to be an antiseptic for your zits, so I mix that with Eight-Hour Cream.
How has it changed you to be a father?
Man, it’s everything. My life now revolves around his naps. Because when he’s on, he’s ready to go. And you don’t want to miss any of it. You want to make sure that he’s getting every opportunity to learn, to love. And it’s tough because we’re in L.A.... A lot of times the paparazzi are out shooting. So the challenge is how do you raise a kid in this town as well-adjusted, where everything’s going to feel normal.... We’re very good at sneaking out. Yesterday, we were grubby, out playing. I just want him to feel normal.
