Michael Douglas is finally changing the story he and Kathleen Turner told for more than 40 years. The 82-year-old actor reveals in his forthcoming memoir, One Helluva Ride, that he and Turner, now 72, had a secret romantic relationship while filming their 1984 hit Romancing the Stone in Mexico.
For decades, the co-stars acknowledged their unmistakable chemistry and attraction but maintained that they never actually became lovers. Douglas now says that version of events was not true.
© Corbis via Getty ImagesIn an excerpt from his memoir published by People on October 2, Douglas says he and Turner “fell hard for each other” during production and began a relationship that they deliberately kept private.
The admission adds a surprising new chapter to one of Hollywood’s most famous on-screen partnerships.
Michael Douglas says he and Kathleen Turner were secretly lovers
Douglas and Turner played adventurer Jack Colton and romance novelist Joan Wilder in Romancing the Stone. Their chemistry helped turn the action-adventure comedy into a major hit and fueled speculation about whether their connection extended beyond the cameras.
According to Douglas, it did.
© Corbis via Getty ImagesHe writes that they were immediately attracted to each other and that their connection evolved from friendship and professional respect into romance as they spent long, demanding days working together in Mexico. “We found each other first as friends, then as co-stars, and finally, as lovers,” Douglas writes in the memoir excerpt.
Douglas says they worked hard to conceal what was happening. After spending time with colleagues following filming, he says he would secretly visit Turner’s hotel room after everyone else had gone to bed.
Their relationship was apparently hidden so effectively that Douglas says Romancing the Stone director Robert Zemeckis and fellow star Danny DeVito did not know about it.
Why Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner denied the romance
The circumstances surrounding the relationship were complicated. Douglas was still legally married to his first wife, Diandra Douglas, although he says they were separated when he left to shoot the movie in Mexico. The couple shared a young son, Cameron, who was five at the time.
Douglas says protecting his wife and son was behind the decision to keep the relationship with Turner secret and later deny that anything romantic had happened.
© Corbis via Getty ImagesThe public explanation remained essentially unchanged for decades. Douglas and Turner had powerful chemistry, flirted and were attracted to each other, but did not act on those feelings. Douglas now explicitly rejects that account, writing, “That was a lie.”
He says it was a story they maintained for roughly four decades, including through their later professional reunions.
Kathleen Turner previously admitted she had feelings for Michael Douglas
Turner had already spoken openly about being attracted to Douglas, making the new revelation particularly intriguing. During a 2018 appearance on ITV’s Loose Women, Turner said she had been “feeling rather romantic towards Michael” while making Romancing the Stone. She explained that she believed Douglas was separated and she was single.
Turner’s version at the time, however, suggested the possibility of a romance that stopped when Douglas’ wife appeared. “You don’t mess with other women’s marriages,” Turner said.
© WireImageIn another 2018 interview, Turner again described the pair as having “great chemistry” and said she understood Douglas was separated from Diandra while she was unattached.
Douglas’ memoir now goes significantly further, saying the two had already become lovers.
What ended Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner’s relationship?
According to Douglas, the turning point came when Diandra traveled to Mexico with Cameron.
Douglas writes that his wife became suspicious and spoke privately with Turner, making clear that she and Douglas were still married. He says Diandra’s understanding of their separation differed from his.
© Getty ImagesThat encounter apparently changed Turner’s perspective. Douglas says Turner did not want to interfere with his marriage. The co-stars ended their relationship, and Douglas reconciled with Diandra, a decision he says was motivated in large part by concern for Cameron and his own memories of experiencing his parents’ divorce as a child.
Douglas and Diandra eventually divorced in 2000. That same year, Douglas married Catherine Zeta-Jones. Turner married real estate developer Jay Weiss in 1984. They later divorced in 2007.
Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner remained friends
Whatever happened behind the scenes of Romancing the Stone did not end their professional relationship.
Douglas and Turner reunited for the 1985 sequel The Jewel of the Nile and starred opposite each other again in the dark 1989 comedy The War of the Roses. Decades later, they reunited on The Kominsky Method, with Turner playing the ex-wife of Douglas’ character.
© Getty Images for AFITheir friendship has also endured. Significantly, People reports that Douglas asked Turner for permission before including the story of their relationship in his memoir.
