What you need to know
- Michael Douglas revealed in his new memoir that he and Kathleen Turner had a secret romantic relationship while filming Romance the stoneeven though both denied it for 40 years.
- The couple kept their affair a secret to protect Douglas’s wife and son, with even close colleagues unaware of their off-screen romance.
- The relationship ended after Douglas’ wife confronted Turner, and both stars subsequently moved on to other marriages and families.
Michael Douglas just made a bold confession about his relationship with his former co-star Kathleen Turner after 40 years.
In the 1980s, Douglas and Turner starred in three films together: Romance the stone (1984), its sequel The jewel of the Nile (1985), and the unrelated black comedy, The War of the Roses (1989). (Danny DeVito also starred in all three films.) Additionally, the couple appeared in seasons 2 and 3 of The Kominsky method in 2021.
For four decades, Douglas, 82, and Turner, 72, denied ever being romantically involved despite their intense chemistry on camera. Douglas finally revealed the truth in his new memoir, A hell of a ride.
“The chemistry I had with Kathleen Turner was so strong that audiences were certain for years that we had a relationship together during the making of the film,” Douglas wrote, according to People. “We both denied it by Romance the stone, Jewel of the Nile, War of the Rosesand even doing press a few years ago for The Kominsky method.”
The “official story” he and Turner told went something like this: “Yes, we admitted, we had incredible chemistry. Yes, we were both, as Kathleen put it, ‘terrible flirts,’ and yes, we were both tempted, but nothing ever happened between us.”
Turner then said: “It was a lie. »
As Douglas explained, this lie “was to protect my wife and son.” (He was married to Diandra Luker from 1977 to 2000 and they share a son, Cameron Douglas.)
He then recalled: “The truth is that during the production of Romance the stone, Kathleen and I fell in love with each other and began a relationship. This was not a matter of nighttime flight; it arose naturally from our close collaboration, the pressure we were under, the extent to which we respected and cared for each other, and our attraction to each other. Like every other man in the world at the time, I was bowled over by Kathleen.
Additionally, Douglas claimed that he and Turner “never had any difficulties”, as their relationship blossomed from friends to co-stars to “lovers”.
He said: “After a grueling day of filming in the jungle, we would go out and have a meal, or go away with the group and then I would sneak into his hotel room after everyone was asleep. There were no cameras in elevators, no assistants using cell phones to take photos. While Jack and Joan fell in love, Kathleen and I kept the chemistry alive. We kept our involvement hidden. Even (director) Bob (Zemeckis) and (co-star) Danny were ignorant.”
Everett Collection
Eventually, the romance ended after Luker brought Cameron to visit Douglas while filming in Mexico. Even though Douglas and Luker were separated, she suspected something was going on between her husband and Turner and confronted the actress. “That gave Kathleen pause. She didn’t want to intervene,” he said.
After divorcing Luker more than a decade later, Douglas said “yes” to Catherine Zeta-Jones in 2000, and they are still married today. He and Zeta-Jones share two children, Dylan Douglas and Carys Zeta Douglas. Meanwhile, Turner was most recently married to Jay Weiss from 1984 to 2007; they share a daughter, Rachel Weiss.
A hell of a ride will be released on October 6.
Romance the stonestreaming on Tubi and Philo; The jewel of the Nile And The War of the Rosesavailable for purchase on several streaming services
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