If you ask Us, Netflix could have a crossover hit on their hands with Ransom Canyon and Virgin River — but have conversations already started?
Josh Duhamel weighed in on the concept during an exclusive interview with Us Weekly while promoting London Calling, saying, “That’s the first I’ve ever heard of that idea.”
Before returning to playing the role of Stanton in season 2, Duhamel, 52, showed his support — under one condition.
“If it’s good, I’m in,” he added. “If it’s forced, no thanks.”
Based on Jodi Thomas‘ book series about a town that is full of drama, romance and hope, Ransom Canyon introduced Us to the locals in Texas Hill Country. Duhamel’s character, Staten Kirkland, is grieving two major losses while navigating his undeniable connection to childhood friend Quinn (Minka Kelly), who has also caught the eye of Staten’s brother-in-law and love triangle rival Davis (Eoin Macken).
There is also newcomer Yancy (Jack Schumacher), who had a past he was hiding from Ellie (Marianly Tejada). Viewers further found themselves invested in a love triangle between high school students Lucas (Garrett Wareing), Lauren (Lizzy Greene) and Reid (Andrew Liner).
“We start shooting [season 2] in a few weeks. I’m excited about that. I literally just got the scripts,” Duhamel told Us. (The group has since confirmed cameras are rolling.) “I haven’t read anything yet. But I do know from the department heads who have read it, they say it’s fantastic. They liked it even better than last year. So I’m excited to find out.”
He continued: “I know that there’s going to be some friction between me and my dad — who wants to do things with the property that I completely disagree with. I’m guessing it’s going to be a lot of drama. And [drama] with me and Minka, which I’m looking forward to. She’s just fantastic in the [show]. I’m as curious as you are.”
The aforementioned drama at the center of the series sounds familiar for those who love another Netflix hit: Virgin River. Drawing inspiration from a book series written by Robyn Carr, Virgin River centers around the lives of residents living in a small town in Northern California, including Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) and her love interest, Jack (Martin Henderson). The series also stars Colin Lawrence, Annette O’Toole, Tim Matheson, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Sarah Dugdale, Zibby Allen, Marco Grazzini, Mark Ghanimé and Kai Bradbury.
In addition to starring in Ransom Canyon, Duhamel got the chance to be challenged while playing a deadbeat dad in his new film.
“It was fun to look at some of the things that I could even do better as a dad,” Duhamel, who shares sons Shepherd, 20 months, with wife Audra Mari, and Axel, 12, with ex Fergie, shared about the film, which is out Friday, September 19. “I work a lot, and I often have a lot of guilt about not being there as often as I could be. So I try to maybe overcompensate or do things to be there often.”
He continued: “But at the same time, you want your kid to look and see [that] this is what you have to do to provide for your family. So on the one hand, you can’t be there all the time, because you’ve got to be setting an example. But on the other hand, you might be missing out on life moments that you’d [be there for] if you were a 9 to 5 dad who went to work every day and came home. So it’s a constant struggle in this business. It’s not easy.”
London Calling is out in theaters now.
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