A day into its release, Netflix‘s new drama series Ransom Canyon has shot to No. 1 on the streamer’s Daily Top 10 ratings in the U.S. The contemporary Western romance, billed as Virgin River meets Yellowstone, stars Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly as childhood friends-turned-star-crossed lovers.
First revealed by Deadline in 2022 as being in fast-track development at Netflix, the adaptation of Jodi Thomas’ books was formally greenlighted in December 2023 after locking in both Duhamel and Kelly as the success of series in the genre relies heavily on the casting of the lead couple.
Both Duhamel and Kelly were top choices. Netflix went after Transformers star Duhamel and, after lengthy negotiations, he was cast first.
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Friday Night Lights alumna Kelly was the only actress invited to a chemistry read with Duhamel and was offered the female lead, I hear. I remember the talent community buzzing at the time about Kelly reportedly asking for pay parity with her male co-star, considered a bold move since well-paying lead series jobs have been sparse during the post-pandemic, post-peak TV industry contraction.
I hear that parity was ultimately not achieved but Netflix stepped up in a major way, raising Kelly’s offer way above her previous earnings history that minimized the pay gap between the leads.
While a 2018 California law eliminated actors “quotes” as it prohibits employers from asking prospective hires about previous salaries, casting offers are still based primarily on actors’ recent work. Duhamel has done a string of leading roles in film and TV over the past decade; Kelly had a memorable arc on hit HBO drama Euphoria.
Asked by Deadline during an interview tied to Ransom Canyon‘s launch about taking a stand for equal pay during the casting of the show, Kelly gave props to Netflix.
“I think that’s probably one of the best things about working with Netflix, is that they’re very pro that. So I didn’t have to fight very hard. They sort of made that easy,” she said. “I feel really lucky to get to work with the company that does care about that.”
Kelly has spoken out about the subject. In 2017, she marked Equal Pay Day with an Instagram post in support of FashionAble, which employs women in Ethiopia, Mexico, Peru and the U.S. “At the core of our mission, we fight for equal opportunity for women, both in job possibilities and income,” she wrote.
If Ransom Canyon is able to sustain its early ratings momentum and becomes a hit, it is quite possible Duhamel and Kelly reach pay parity in subsequent seasons. They are treated as equal in most of the series’ promotional materials, including the key art at the top of the story.
You can read and watch Deadline’s interview with Kelly and Duhamel here. For a deep dive into Season 1, read Deadline’s interview with series showrunner April Blair.