Michael Douglas biography, career path, net worth, age, wife, kids, young 2025

Michael Douglas’s biography

Michael Douglas is a famous actor and director, the representative of a famous acting dynasty. There are two Oscars and millions of viewer’s hearts among his awards. There were no falls in Michael's career, only takeoffs because each role he played was flawless. Net worth: $350 million.

Childhood and family

Michael Kirk Douglas is the elder son of famous Spartacus, Kirk Douglas, whose parents had emigrated from Russia at the beginning of the 20th century, and actress Diana Darrid (died in 2015). Michael was born in New Jersey on September 25, 1944, and two and a half years later he had a younger brother, Joel.

In 1951 Douglas Sr. divorced his wife, but Kirk and Diana kept good relations, so their sons didn’t feel a lack of parental attention. Michael stayed with his mother, who never tried to restrain her son’s violent temperament and quite free nature.

Despite the fact that Michael studied well, he was expelled from school. The boy skipped classes, rode a motorcycle, drank, and dared teachers, recognizing no authority, except his father. Kirk was an ideal for him because being the son of a Jewish junkman, he had managed to get out of the very bottom of the society and become a cinema icon for entire America.

After watching the first film with his father, Michael wanted to become an actor too, but Kirk was against and enrolled his son in a military school. A few years spent at the school hardened the nature of the future actor, and having graduated from it, he insisted on his and entered the acting class at the University of California.

Career. Stellar beginning

The envious told that Michael’s father had a hand in the brilliant start of his son’s career, but these were the only gossip. Though it can’t be denied that Michael has clearly inherited his father’s talent and hard nature and has received his mother’s delicate features and long eyelashes.

The young actor’s first role was the main one: in the 1971 Summertree social drama, he played twenty-year-old Jerry, who returns home to inform his parents that he has been expelled from the university and now he must leave for Vietnam. The picture was a success due to the topical theme, raised by director Anthony Newley, and talented and beautiful young Douglas.

Douglas’s first role – the lead role in the Summertree

Michael shot in the next picture in the company of Ben Gazzara. In 1972 When Michael Calls mysterious drama he played a young doctor who was called by his late brother and the call put a start to unexplained events and terrible deaths in the small town.

In the same year, the young actor starred in the Napoleon and Samantha family film, which became a classic of the American children's films. Ten-year-old Jodie Foster played the main role. She was injured on the set being attacked by a lion.

The Streets of San Francisco crime detective TV series secured the success of the first pictures with the rising star. In the series, Michael played young detective Keller, and he refused the double and performed all the tricks himself. Without waiting for the end of the first season, Douglas left the series for his idea to become a producer.

Douglas Sr. wanted to play the lead role in the One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest because he owned the screening rights of the famous novel by Ken Kesey. It took Michael a lot of time and nerves to dissuade his father and insist on Jack Nicholson. In 1975 the film won four Oscars and brought fabulous profits to the Douglas dynasty. Much later, in The Ragman's Son autobiography, Kirk would write that he would give everything to the last cent to play them instead of Nicholson.

1978 was marked by the release of The China Syndrome thriller, where Michael played the lead role and acted as director. His partner was Jane Fonda. The picture’s success was incredible, it received five nominations for an Oscar and as much for the Golden Globe.

Continuing to engage in directing, Michael starred in films, each of which invariably became an event.

Best roles

One of Michael Douglas’s most memorable roles is adventurer Jack Colton in the (1985-1986) Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile pictures. Michael's partner was Kathleen Turner, and his college friend Danny de Vito played an antique dealer in the picture.

Michael Douglas in the Romancing the Stone

In the same company Michael starred in the breathtakingly funny comedy The War of the Roses, where he played Oliver, with whom his ex-wife Barbara, played by Turner, was sharing a house. Danny De Vito played the lawyer, who found the dead spouses crashed by the chandelier as a result of military actions.

In the thriller with the elements of the 1987 psychodrama Fatal Attraction, the actor played in a duet with Glenn Close, who terrorized the family of Michael’s character. The picture received an inconceivable number of nominations and awards and entered the top ten best pictures of the year.

For the role of Gekko in the Wall Street drama, which also starred Daryl Hannah, as well as Charlie and Martin Sheen, the actor received an Oscar.

The role of detective Nick Curran, investigating the murder of a rock star in the 1992 thriller the Basic Instinct is also considered one of the most successful by Douglas. His character is under the spell of Sharon Stone and does not seem to notice the obvious truths. But no matter how astute the viewer is, the end is unpredictable.

Basic Instinct 1992 - Trailer

In 1993 Michael struck the world with his role in the Falling Down. His character was unlucky, failures literally fell upon him, turning his life into hell, and when his patience is over, the quiet office employee took up arms. Robert Duvall and Barbara Hershey were shot in the film.

From 1994 to 1999 Douglas starred in ten films, one of the most significant of which is The Game thriller, where Michael’s hero’s brother is played by Sean Penn. The film was named the best picture of the year and was a huge success. Another outstanding work of the period is considered to be The Perfect Murder, a thriller where Michael plays the deceived husband of the heroine played by Gwyneth Paltrow. Having conceived the perfect murder, he turns to his wife's lover, offering him a substantial reward for the deceiver's death, but the matter takes a very unexpected turn and unpredictable consequences. The lover was played by Viggo Mortensen.

The Perfect Murder - Trailer

The year of 2000 enriched the world cinema with the picture Traffic, which was awarded all the existing awards. Douglas was accompanied on the set with Benicio del Toro, Dennis Quaid, and beautiful Catherine Zeta-Jones. In addition to drugs, Steven Soderbergh’s picture raised other serious problems and caused a resonance in society.

Rarely pleasing his fans with works in comedy projects, in 2003-2006 he played in The In-Laws, It Runs in the Family and You, Me, and Dupree comedies.

In the 2007 King of California black comedy, the actor played a real psycho who returned from the hospital but never refused the obsessive idea to find the treasure. The irresponsible father’s daughter was played by Evan Rachel Wood.

King of California - Trailer

In the Beyond a Reasonable Doubt political detective story with an unpredictable end, Douglas played the district attorney, whom the young journalist played by Jesse Metcalfe is trying to catch in crimes.

In Steven Soderbergh’s Haywire the actor rallied around him a brilliant cast of Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor, Channing Tatum.

Haywire - Trailer

The most unexpected image embodied by brilliant Douglas on the screens is the role of entertainer Liberace in the Behind the Candelabra drama. Matt Damon played Liberace’s lover. Could one imagine that two such brutal guys would be able to play such gay people so authentically? Of course, because they can do anything.

In 2014 Michael appeared in the image of a cynical, rich businessman, looking for new entertainment in Beyond the Reach thriller. The following year he joined the actors in the Marvel Universe, playing Hank Pym in the Ant-Man.

Ant-Man - Trailer

In the Unlocked action film, released in spring 2017, famous Douglas played the mentor of the heroine by Noomi Rapace. John Malkovich and Toni Colette also played in the picture. In 2018 the Ant-Man and the Wasp were completed, where the actor’s partners were Michael Peña, Michelle Pfeiffer as well as Laurence Fishburne.

At the end of 2018, Michael Douglas’s star was opened on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of his career.

Michael Douglas’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

In 2018 the premiere of the Chinese drama action picture the Animal World, where Chinese actors starred alongside Douglas, took place. The picture was not appreciated in Europe and America, partly because of the presence of animated filming, the amount of which seemed unnecessary to many critics.

Michael Douglas’s personal life

The actor’s first wife was a girl who had nothing to do with acting. Austrian Diandra Luker was the daughter of a high-ranking official. Michael and Diandra married in 1977. Their son Cameron was born in 1978. The couple’s relationships were smooth but once Michael was seized by the routine and in 1997 he left Diandra.

Michael's firstborn, Cameron tried himself in acting but in vain. In 2009 he was accused of smuggling banned substances on a large scale. He spent 5 years in prison.

In 1998 at the Masks of Zorro show Michael Douglas saw Catherine Zeta-Jones and was so fascinated by the girl that he directly told her that he wanted to become the father of her children. It is not known what scared off Catherine more – Michael’s directness or the fact that he was not yet officially divorced, but she refused to continue the acquaintance. But Michael was the true son of his father, and there was no such bastion that would stand before him, just as Catherine could not stand. After six months of courtship, she gave up.

Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones

Michael and Catherine were born on the same day, they both believe that they were destined to each other. In 2000 their first child, Dylan was born and the actors soon married. Their daughter Carys was born in 2003.

When Michael was diagnosed with an oncological disease in 2010, Catherine did everything so that he would recover and fight against the terrible disease. Stress and feelings for her beloved affected her health and the actress showed signs of mental disorder. Despite Michael’s discontent, who didn’t consider mental problems like a disease at all after the experience he had gone through, the spouses still managed to cope with the problem.

Michael Douglas nowadays

One of the most memorable works of Michael Douglas was the Comedy multi-part project "The Kominsky Method", where the actor played the role of an acting teacher. In January 2019, Michael received another Golden Globe for this role.

Michael Douglas continues to appear in films, so premieres with his participation occur annually. So, in 2019, Douglas played Hank Pym in the next part of " Avengers: Endgame", and in 2020, he participated in the creation of the animated series "What If...?" in the same role.

Michael Douglas: latest news and articles

Ana Love

«My Dad Is Crazy» is a good movie. Douglas is great as always.

2021-04-26 18:14:56
Christina Vasquez

With Douglas I looked the other day cool movie «A Perfect Murder». Powerful thriller, addictive!

2021-04-16 16:19:25
Mary Sandoval

Michael Douglas has such masculine strength and charisma. In general, I really like this actor

2021-03-27 14:27:46
Jose Johnson

«Basic Instinct»!! With Douglas. This is a bobm, not a movie. You need to watch it, everyone.

2021-03-22 23:12:24
Alejandro Zachary Green

Naturally, such an actor`s genes are powerful, here, apart from this career, there can be no particular choice, since talent! Douglas is a legend for me

2021-03-07 08:05:16