Mighty Ducks: Game Changers Recruits Josh Duhamel to Play New Coach in Season 2, Replacing Emilio Estevez
A new coach will hit the ice when The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers returns for Season 2.
Disney+ announced Monday that Josh Duhamel has joined the cast as Gavin Cole, a former NHL player-turned-coach who runs the super-intense summer hockey institute where the series is set this season. Described as inspirational, charming and hardcore, Cole is “big on the hockey metaphor that applies to life.”
The news comes after it was previously announced that Emilio Estevez would not be returning as Gordon Bombay next season. Estevez shut down reports that his departure had anything to do with COVID protocols, saying that “my exit from the show was due to a myriad of creative differences — any other narrative is false.”
Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith will return as showrunners for Season 2 and executive-produce alongside series creator Steve Brill, Lauren Graham, George Heller, Brad Petrigala, and Jordan Kerner and Jon Avnet.
Season 1 ended with the Don’t Bothers forfeiting the state championship game due to Sofi’s injury and later defeating the Ducks in an unsanctioned matchup that ended with them winning ownership of the coveted team moniker.
Kenan Thompson, who played Russ Tyler in the Mighty Ducks films, previously expressed interest in appearing in Season 2.
“I would love to do it if they can figure it out,” Thompson told TVLine. “I told [Brill] I wanted to do Season 1, but they ended up having to do it without my participation [due to scheduling]. There’s only one me. I can only be in one place at a time.”
How do you feel about Josh Duhamel joining Mighty Ducks: Game Changers? What do you hope to see in Season 2? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
It’s not a bad replacement for Emilio… though, I’m still holding on to hope that Joshua Jackson returns to make a cameo appearance (schedule permitting) at some point.
“Creative differences.” LOL…
I’m a fan of Josh but I’d rather he do a Las Vegas tv movie for Peacock as new President of Operations.
Now that would be fabulous! Wish all of the original cast would return. Great show!! Don’t know how it would do in today’s political and social climate, but the show was awesome and always a fan of Josh!!
I WISH THAT EMILIO AND THAT OTHER ACTOR COULD BOTH WORK TOGETHER ON THAT MOVIE. THAT THEY COULD TEACH THOSE PLAYERS …… JUST IN TOTAL OPPOSITE WAYS.
Coach Bombay was never a necessity for me in the reboot, but I’m cool with how it played out last season. The show proved it can exist without him by sidelining him (as a coach) for most of the season. Duhamel will be a good fit in a new story arc and I’m hoping they’ll be sprinkling in some past Ducks as well.
Sorry my other comment wasn’t meant as a reply to you. Not sure how that happened.
honestly, as long as Lauren Graham is on board I have absolutely no doubt this next season of the Mighty Ducks season will be great! Quack Quack
I like Josh Duhamel so no offense to him… but I still wish the show was more like Cobra Kai and embraced the history of the movies more. There are a ton of characters that could have had kids on the team or been the coach. I guess Disney cares more about having a big name actor vs honoring fans that grew up with the movies.
The big thing is nobody from the original Karate Kid movies were busy with successful careers like some of the Mighty Ducks cast. Covid protocols also made any cameos hard to do.
As long as it’s not Ted Orion from D3.
This is great news, and now I really want to check it out! :) If only they could get Joshua Jackson back too!
Josh Jackson > Josh Duhamel
LOL. Josh Duhamel is certainly a lightweight, but nothing is worse than the monotone acting of Josh Jackson.
“Hi, my career is in the toilet!”
Surprised they were able to get a fairy big actor for this. Jackson is easily getting better roles than this, and I assumed Duhamel would too.