He was once one of the biggest evangelists in Hollywood – surpassing his sexy roles in movies basic Instinct And fatal Attraction Even more of her sensual mannerisms when the cameras weren’t rolling. But while Michael Douglas, 82, has become a changed man over the past 26 years, remaining faithful to his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones, 57, it seems his past indiscretions are now wreaking havoc again. And it’s all thanks to her own loose lips in her brand new memoir, One Helluva Ride.
The book details a roll call of Michael’s former girlfriends, as he describes his love life from being a student, where he became involved with his own ‘Mrs. Robinson’ (an older woman who was a friend of his mother), to later relationships with the late socialite Nancy Pfister, actress Lee Purcell and his famous women. basic Instinct Co-star Jean Tripplehorn. But Michael’s decision to finally come clean about his historic affair with actress Kathleen Turner has really come into question – both on the promo trail and at home with Kathryn.
By all accounts, rumors of an affair between Michael and Kathleen have been swirling for years — ever since they first starred together romancing the stone In 1984 (they teamed up again jewel of the nile river in 1985 and war of roses in 1989, as well as in season three Kominsky method in 2021). But for forty years, they both staunchly denied it, as Michael was still married to his first wife, Deandra Luker, when the alleged affair occurred.
However, he has now revealed that he actually mixed up the filming romancing the stoneAdding that he had ‘so much love’ for his ‘smart, funny and sexy’ co-star. Michael emphasizes in his book that he and Diandra were in fact separated at the time, and that the two were already having affairs, but he also said that his romance with Kathleen ended when Diandra came to the set and made it clear that ‘her view of the terms of our separation was different from mine’ – which in turn ‘gave Kathleen pause’.
Michael has clarified about his affair with Kathleen © Getty Images
Now, we’re told Michael’s move to back down from a lie that was more than 40 years in the making is causing some serious drama in the house. Of course, Katherine knows all about his lothario ways before the wedding. But, as insiders tell us, she never knew he and Kathleen were more than friends and, now that the truth has come out, she’s struggling with the worry of what she thought she knew and what else.
‘This is a huge shock to everyone,’ says an insider close to Michael and Katherine, who have two children together – Dylan, 26, and Carys, 23. ‘He and Kathleen denied it for decades, and they were both so confident about it, everyone believed them. Katherine is now wondering if there are other co-stars he secretly slept with, this is the hardest part for her. It doesn’t matter to him that his affair with Kathleen happened before they got together, the point is that he lied about it for so long.
‘Katherine absolutely loves Michael – she is still as committed to the marriage as ever. But it is well known in her circle that she has always struggled a bit with her wild past. Katherine knew she was marrying one of Hollywood’s biggest publicists, so a certain amount of insecurity arose from the beginning, which wasn’t helped by the fact that she pretty much refused to talk about it. This has been an elephant in the room for over 26 years, so he may not be so surprised that it’s been completely destroyed, now that he’s essentially burned the touchpaper with this new book.’
It’s safe to say that Katherine has already fought a lot to keep her relationship intact. When they first got together, they already faced huge skepticism that it would not last due to their 25-year age difference. Then, in 2013, the pair briefly separated after Michael battled throat cancer for three years… and she later joked that she contracted the disease from oral sex, a statement she later publicly apologized for. Around the same time, Katherine was grappling with the realities of being diagnosed with bipolar II disorder in 2011, which also put a strain on their relationship. Nevertheless, the pair reconciled in 2014 – the actress later said, ‘It’s impossible not to have ups and downs’, but she also said they were happier than ever. And, apparently, that seems to be the case, as they’ve been living all over the world, while Michael has mainly focused on supporting Katherine in her career.
Katherine feels ‘blindsided’ and ‘humiliated’ © Getty Images
But now that his book is spreading wings, it has apparently destabilized his otherwise very happy foundation. And the stress is clearly having an impact, because Michael has since appeared clingy and defensive in interviews promoting the book. Speaking to The Sunday Times last week, he criticized the interviewer’s suggestion that he had slept with ‘so many women’ in his life, and responded in an apparently ‘accusatory’ manner, ‘I was a healthy product of the 60s. My curiosity is, of all countries, of all the press I work for, why are British people so preoccupied with sex issues?’
He also aggressively denied rumors that he went to rehab for sex addiction in the ’90s, again blaming the British tabloids. The actor said, ‘A British tabloid editor came up with this story, thank you very much, we’re talking about 82 here. It happens with the tabloids and, well, I wouldn’t blame your country alone, but you’re probably better known for it than most. This was not true.
We’re told this is all partly due to the tension now brewing between Michael and Katherine. Although he has been incredibly open and candid about the book, he also previously said that Katherine had not read it. Now that all the revelations are coming in fast, it seems she’s reacting in real time to some of the more shocking details, and she’s not liking what she’s hearing.
‘The main thing is that Katherine is feeling blindsided and humiliated, so Michael is in danger right now and most people would agree that this is all his own doing. This is almost certainly why he became so irritable – he immediately dismissed any suggestion that he had a sex addiction as it was still an extremely sensitive topic that upset him greatly and created the possibility of more awkward discussions with Katherine. But he felt strongly that he could not hide or avoid certain incidents and meetings which had happened long before they met, which is why he came forward and revealed everything.’
Ultimately, we’re told, the couple is committed. But it will take a minute for the dust to settle, and – in the meantime – Michael will have a lot of work to do.