How Josh Duhamel’s modeling win over Ashton Kutcher led to unexpected career twists for both Hollywood stars.
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before Josh Duhamel and Ashton Kutcher became Hollywood hotshots, they were just two hunky dudes battling it out on the runway.
Josh spilled all the tea on a podcast recently, and it’s absolutely hilarious how their modeling rivalry went down back in ’97.
THE RUNWAY SHOWDOWN
Josh was just trying to get noticed by some fancy Hollywood agents when he entered this modeling competition.
He had no idea he’d be going head-to-head with some random kid from Iowa who turned out to be none other than Ashton freaking Kutcher!
Talk about a small world, right? The tension was real as they waited to hear who’d take home the crown.
THAT “MISS AMERICA” MOMENT
When they announced Ashton as runner-up, Josh literally felt like he’d just won Miss America! “I was so excited.
I felt like they lifted me up and put on a sash and a tiara,” he laughed. Can you just picture Josh strutting around with an imaginary tiara?
The guy was over the moon thinking his career was about to explode!
VICTORY BLUES
But here’s the twist – Josh’s big win led to absolutely zilch! Meanwhile, Ashton’s “loss” somehow landed him a Calvin Klein gig and that iconic role on That ’70s Show.
Josh was totally pissed! Like, hello? He was literally crowned “male model of the year” and got nothing while the runner-up hit the jackpot. Talk about unfair!
THE COMEBACK KID
It took two whole years before Josh finally caught a break on All My Children.
From there, he hustled his way into shows like Las Vegas and snagged roles in Transformers and other big movies.
Looking back now, Josh thinks not getting instant fame was actually a blessing in disguise. It forced him to work harder than ever!
FRENEMIES FOREVER
These days, Josh and Ashton can laugh about their modeling days. Ashton even admitted to Howard Stern that he was super bitter about losing:
“Handsome son of a btch, that fer. I was so f*ing upset at this guy for so long!”
But when they finally met again, Ashton had to admit Josh was indeed good-looking. Sometimes you just gotta give credit where it’s due!
WHAT THEY’RE UP TO NOW
Both guys are still crushing it in Hollywood! Josh is currently playing a rugged rancher in Netflix’s new series Ransom Canyon, while Ashton recently starred in the Netflix rom-com Your Place or Mine and made appearances in That ’90s Show.
Funny how two models from the Midwest ended up with such similar career paths!