The Dukes were just a couple of “good old boys, never meaning no harm” who drove around the countryside in Uncle Jesse’s vehicle “The General Lee”. More often than not, they were being chased by a gang of local police officers who wanted to nail the Dukes for the latest bit of mischief they had gotten themselves into! Have you guessed the TV show yet? We can only be talking about The Dukes of Hazzard of course.
Bo and Luke Duke (John Schneider and Tom Wopat) were two guys who had a smoking hot cousin, Daisy (Catherine Bach) and lived with their Uncle Jesse. Set in the fictional county of Hazzard and featuring stunts and good ol’ fashioned production value, the television show aired 1979-1985 and every season was packed with action and humour… But have you ever wondered what happened to the Duke clan?
The Dukes of Hazzard became something of a sensation with a massive fan base and the show has remained popular with its fans to this day. This resulted in a movie reboot in 2005, and while it had its charm, it could never repeat the feel and replicate the success of the original show.
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Bo, Luke, and Daisy Duke often appeared alongside county commissioner Jefferson Davis ‘J.D.’ Hogg (aka Boss Hogg) and sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane. Just looking at this picture brings the feelings we got watching the classic show flooding back to us, and makes us want to relive the adventures that we shared with the Dukes!
But what do Bo and Luke and the Dukes of Hazzard cast look like now?
Bo and Luke lived with their Uncle Jesse, who was like a father to them, and their cousin Daisy Duke in the fictional Hazzard county. There was a real feeling of camaraderie between them, even if they didn’t always see eye to eye all the time. The Dukes were one of those families you wished you could either meet or be a part of.
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The show was based on the movie Moonrunners (1975) and country music star Waylon Jennings narrated both the movie and the series. Yet The Dukes of Hazzard made the original idea completely its own and is now what most people remember more fondly than the original source that it was based on.
So without further ado, let’s find out what the Dukes of Hazzard cast members look like now. Scroll down the article below to read all about the actors and actresses that brought this hilarious show to life!
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1. Catherine Bach – Daisy Duke
Then
Catherine Bach already had several roles on TV before getting this one. However, this made her a household name. We all had to see those Daisy Duke shorts. Daisy Duke has gone down in history as one of those major sex symbols that every man wanted to meet, and every woman wanted to be like. When the smoking hot Daisy was on the screen, it was very hard to look anywhere else!
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Now
Catherine Bach went on to star in the Canadian TV series African Skies a few years later in the early 90s. She also had a guest spot in the show Monk in 2006. The actress has remained busy and continues to act, recently appearing in the show The Young and The Restless as Anita Lawson in more than 50 episodes.
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2. Denver Pyle – Uncle Jesse Duke
Then
Pyle had been acting for a long time in the movies before he got this role. He also had a lot of popular TV shows to his name like The Andy Griffith Show in the 50s and 60s. Denver Pyle had certainly had a glittering career before he got cast as Uncle Jesse Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard!
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Now
Denver Pyle continued to act after his role in The Dukes of Hazzard, but he sadly passed away at the age of 77 in 1997 when he succumbed to lung cancer. He is sorely missed but has left a wonderful legacy for us to go back and re-watch and enjoy over and over again. Rest in peace, Uncle Jesse.
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3. James Best – Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane
Then
With many acting credits already to his name before he was cast in The Dukes of Hazzard, James Best was the perfect choice as Rosco P. Coltrane. He played the part in a way that it’s hard to imagine anyone else matching. Unfortunately – spoiler alert – he never did catch those pesky Duke boys in Hazzard county!
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Now
Best moved to Florida to teach at the University of Central Florida years after the show ended. He completed an autobiography in 2009 entitled ‘Best in Hollywood: The Good, The Bad and The Beautiful’. Best continued acting right up until 2013, and then he sadly died on April 6, 2015 due to pneumonia.
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4. John Schneider – Bo Duke
Then
This role was John Schneider’s big break but he also pursued singing on the side throughout the 80s and released a total of nine albums. Bo Duke was a favourite with the ladies and many men wanted to be just like him, too. He was a big part of The Dukes of Hazzard and certainly made the role his own.
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Now
Schneider has remained incredibly prolific with his acting, and now has close to 150 acting credits to his name with little signs of slowing down. He has lent his voice talents to a lot of voice roles, including the main role in the cartoon version of the hit movie, The Mummy, and he has also appeared in popular shows like Smallville over the years too. When it comes to John Schneider and Tom Wopat, their careers couldn’t be any more different…
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5. Tom Wopat – Luke Duke
Then
Luke Duke was the older cousin who was always the voice of reason. He was the strapping young man who was very much the main male sex-symbol in the show and a massive hit with the ladies! Everyone had a favourite of the two Dukes, though, so who was yours? Everyone has to choose between Bo and Luke Duke (unless you have a particular thing for Boss Hogg, no judgement from us!)
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Now
Tom Wopat has done some singing, which seems to have been his main passion all along, but he has also continued to act on and off over the years, regularly appearing on our screens – though he has never managed to recapture the success he found in The Dukes of Hazzard.
The actor also recently pleaded guilty to sexual assault and was also found with two large bags of cocaine in his car. So he might not be reuniting with the Dukes of Hazzard crew any time soon… We’d expect as much from Vance Duke or Coy Duke, but not Luke Duke!
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6. Sorrell Booke – Boss Hogg
Then
Sorrell Booke had already lived a full life before landing this role. He had degrees from Columbia and Yale University and served in the Korean War as a counterintelligence officer, hardly the typical resume of a Hazzard county resident! Booke had been a very busy actor for almost 30 years before landing his role in The Dukes of Hazzard, so he was certainly deserving of county commissioner Boss Hogg’s pristine white suit.
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Now
Booke continued to act right up until 1994 when he passed away of colorectal cancer. He certainly lived his life to the full though and didn’t give up work until the end of his very busy life. Boss Hogg was a truly underrated member of the Dukes of Hazzard cast!
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7. Sonny Shroyer – Deputy Enos Strate
Then
Sonny Shroyer was a professional model in 1961 and had a role in the film Payday in 1972. Shroyer played the part of Enos Strate, and even though a lot of his time was as a side character, he still played a big part in the show and became a popular character in his own right.
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Now
Strate has continued to act, appearing in such diverse productions as Forrest Gump, Van Wilder: Freshman Year and American Gothic. It’s good to see that he is still appearing on our screens on a regular basis with little sign that he is slowing down! Many actors can fizzle out of the limelight after a while, but not this one it seems!
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8. Rick Hurst – Cletus Hogg
Then
Cletus was the second cousin of Jefferson Davis ‘J.D.’ Hogg, and often chased after the Duke boys and usually ended up with his squad car in the river. It never got old though, and it’s good to have someone who is always on the fringes of the show but still manages to raise a lot of smiles over the time that you watch it. He even shared an on-screen kiss with Daisy Duke, which as any Catherine Bach fans will support, was surely every actor’s dream back in the 80s.
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Now
Rick Hurst is now in his 70s but still attends all of the Dukes of Hazzard reunions and has appeared in a few spin-offs over the years. He remains busy acting, too, and has been in productions as recently as 2016, including such classic films as Return of the Killer Shrews!
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