Michael Douglas
Encyclopedia
Michael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer
, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes
and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture
, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
, and as Best Actor
in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the AFI
Life Achievement Award in 2009. He is the eldest of actor Kirk Douglas
's four sons.
, the first child of actor Kirk Douglas
and Bermudian
actress Diana Dill
. His paternal grandparents, Harry Demsky (born Herschel Danielovitch) and Bryna Demsky (née Sanglel), were Jewish immigrants from Gomel in Belarus
(at that time a part of the Russian Empire
). His mother and maternal grandparents, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Melville Dill
and Ruth Rapalje Neilson, were natives of Devonshire Parish, Bermuda
. Thomas Dill served as Attorney General of Bermuda
and was commanding officer of the Bermuda Militia Artillery
. Douglas has a younger brother, Joel Douglas
(born 1947), and two paternal half-brothers, Peter Douglas
(born 1955) and Eric Douglas
(1958–2004).
(now Choate Rosemary Hall) in Wallingford, Connecticut
. He received his B.A.
in drama from the University of California, Santa Barbara
in 1968, where he was also the Honorary President of the UCSB Alumni Association
. He studied acting with Wynn Handman
at The American Place Theater in New York City.
and Summertree
. His first significant role came in the TV series The Streets of San Francisco
from 1972 to 1976, where he starred alongside Karl Malden
. Douglas later said that Malden became a "mentor" and someone he "admired and loved deeply". After Douglas left the show, he had a long association with his mentor until Malden's death on July 1, 2009. In 2004, Douglas presented Malden with the Monte Cristo Award of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
in Waterford, Connecticut
, for the Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 1975, Douglas received from his father, Kirk Douglas
, the rights to the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
. Michael went on to produce the film of the same name
with Saul Zaentz
. Kirk Douglas considered playing the starring role himself, having starred in an earlier stage version, but chose against it, considering himself too old. The lead role went instead to a young Jack Nicholson
, who would go on to win the Academy Award for Best Actor
. Douglas won the Award for Best Picture
for producing the film.
After leaving Streets of San Francisco in 1976, Douglas played a hospital doctor in the medical thriller Coma
(1978), and in 1979 he played the role of a troubled marathon runner in Running
. In 1979, he both produced and starred in The China Syndrome
, a dramatic film co-starring Jane Fonda
and Jack Lemmon
about a nuclear power plant accident (the Three Mile Island accident
took place 12 days after the film's release). The film was considered "one of the most intelligent Hollywood films of the 1970s."
. It also helped launch Kathleen Turner
to stardom, reintroduced Douglas as a capable leading man, and gave director Bob Zemeckis his first box-office success. It was followed a year later by a sequel, The Jewel of the Nile
, which he also produced.
The year 1987 saw Douglas star in the horror thriller Fatal Attraction
with Glenn Close
. That same year he played tycoon Gordon Gekko
in Oliver Stone
's Wall Street for which he received an Academy Award as Best Actor. He reprised his role as Gekko in the sequel Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps in 2010, also directed by Stone.
Douglas again paired with Kathleen Turner for the 1989 film The War of the Roses
, which also starred Danny DeVito
. In 1989, he starred in Ridley Scott
's international police crime drama Black Rain opposite Andy García
and Kate Capshaw
. The film was shot in Osaka
, Japan
.
In 1992, Douglas had another successful starring role when he appeared alongside Sharon Stone
in the film Basic Instinct
. The movie was a box office hit, and sparked controversy over its depictions of bisexuality and lesbian
ism. In 1994, Douglas and Demi Moore
starred in the hit movie Disclosure
focusing on the topic of sexual harassment
with Douglas playing a man harassed by his new female boss. Other popular films he starred during these decade were Falling Down
, The American President, The Ghost and the Darkness
, The Game
(directed by David Fincher
), and a remake of Alfred Hitchcock
's classic - Dial M for Murder
- titled A Perfect Murder
. In 1998, Douglas received the Crystal Globe
award for outstanding artistic contribution to world cinema at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
.
In 2000, Douglas starred in Steven Soderbergh
's critically acclaimed film Traffic
, opposite Benicio del Toro
and future wife Catherine Zeta-Jones
. That same year, he also received critical acclaim for his role in Wonder Boys
as a professor and novelist suffering from writer's block
. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama as well as several other awards from critics.
, Douglas was capable of playing characters who were "weak, culpable, morally indolent, compromised, and greedy for illicit sensation without losing that basic probity or potential for ethical character that we require of a hero." Critic and author Rob Edelman points out similarities in many of Douglas's roles, writing that in some of his leading films, he personified the "contemporary, Caucasian middle-to-upper-class American male who finds himself the brunt of female anger because of real or imagined sexual slights."
These themes of male victimization are seen in films such as Fatal Attraction
(1987), with Glenn Close
, War of the Roses
(1989), with Kathleen Turner
, Basic Instinct
(1992), Sharon Stone
, Falling Down
(1993), and Disclosure
(1994), with Demi Moore
. For his characters in films such as these, "any kind of sexual contact with someone other than his mate and the mother of his children is destined to come at a costly price." Edelman describes his characters as the "Everyman who must contend with, and be victimized by, these women and their raging, psychotic sexuality."
Conversely, Douglas also played powerful characters with dominating personalities equally well: as Gordon Gekko, in both versions of Wall Street, he acted the role of a "greedy yuppie personification of the Me generation," convinced that "greed is good;" in Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile, he played an idealistic soldier of fortune; in The Star Chamber
(1983), he was a court judge fed up with an inadequate legal system, leading him to become involved with a vigilante group; and in Black Rain (1989), he proved he could also play a Stallone
-like action hero as a New York City cop.
He has also offered reasons why he has become successful in both acting and producing:
In 2003, Douglas starred in It Runs in the Family
, which featured three generations of his family (his parents, Kirk and Diana, as well as his own son, Cameron
). The film, although a labor of love, was not successful, critically or at the box office. Douglas starred in the solid commercial action flick Don't Say a Word
, then the poorly received action-thriller The Sentinel
in 2006. During that time, he also guest-appeared on the episode, "Fagel Attraction
", of the popular television sitcom
Will and Grace, as a gay cop attracted to Will Truman
(Eric McCormack
); the performance earned Douglas an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Show.
Douglas was approached for Basic Instinct 2
, but he declined to participate in the project. He said:
, according to Variety
. Douglas will play the attorney who took Ford to court on behalf of a single mother from Texas who was paralyzed and nearly died after an accident. The trial exposed the automaker's indifference to flaws in its Sport Utility Vehicle
s (SUV). The movie will be based on Adam Penenberg
's 2003 book of the same name. Douglas will play Attorney Tab Turner, who represented Donna Bailey after the Ford Explorer
SUV she was riding in rolled over following a Firestone
tire failure.
On December 17, 2007 it was announced that Douglas would announce the introduction to NBC Nightly News
, some two years after Howard Reig
, the previous announcer, retired.
(1971), he began dating Brenda Vaccaro
. The relationship lasted for about six years.
In March 1977, 33 year old Douglas married 19 year old Diandra Luker, the daughter of an Austrian diplomat. They had one son, Cameron
, born in 1978. In 1997 Diandra filed for divorce and was awarded $45 million as her settlement.
Dating since March 1999, Douglas married Welsh
actress Catherine Zeta-Jones
on November 18, 2000. They were both born on September 25, though 25 years apart. Zeta-Jones says that when they met in Deauville
, France
, Douglas used the line "I want to father your children." They have two children, Dylan Michael (born August 8, 2000) and Carys Zeta (born April 20, 2003).
They planned on renewing their wedding vows in 2010 as part of their 10th wedding anniversary. The idea was hers, and came after Douglas was found to have advanced stages of cancer. One report notes that "Michael was in tears when she suggested it to him," and he sees it as a “wonderful expression of love.”
Douglas, the son of a Jewish father and an Anglican mother, has declared no religious affiliation.
through his mother's birth in Bermuda.
accident which sidelined his acting career for three years. In September 1992, the same year Basic Instinct came out, he underwent treatment for alcoholism
and drug addiction at Sierra Tucson Center.
James Parker sued Douglas for $25 million. Parker accused Douglas of hitting him in the groin
with an errant golf ball
, causing Parker to lose a testicle
and his job. The case was later settled out of court.
Dawnette Knight, who was accused of sending violent letters to the couple that contained graphic threats on Zeta-Jones' life. Testifying, Zeta-Jones said the threats left her so shaken she feared a nervous breakdown. Knight claimed she had been in love with Douglas and admitted to the offences, which took place between October 2003 and May 2004. She was sentenced to three years in prison.
and radiation
treatment. On August 31, 2010 Douglas appeared on Late Show with David Letterman
and confirmed that the cancer was at an advanced stage IV
. Douglas attributed the cancer to a combination of stress, his previous alcohol abuse, and years of heavy smoking.
In November 2010, Douglas was put on a special weight gain diet by his doctors due to the excessive weight loss leaving him weak. On January 11, 2011, he said in an interview that the tumor was gone. He admitted that the illness and aggressive treatment had caused him to lose 32 lbs in weight. He will have to have monthly screenings because there is a very high chance that the cancer could return over the course of the next two to three years. Although Douglas has described the cancer as throat cancer, many doctors believe he was actually diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer
.
concert in Oslo, Norway, on December 11, 2003. They acted as co-masters of ceremony in the concert celebrating the award given to Iranian human rights activist Shirin Ebadi
. In 2006, Douglas was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters
(D.Litt.) from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
He is an advocate of nuclear disarmament
, a supporter of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
, and sits on the Board of Directors of the anti-war grantmaking foundation Ploughshares Fund
. In 1998, he was appointed UN Messenger of Peace by Secretary-General Kofi Annan
. He is a notable Democrat and has donated money to Barack Obama
, Christopher Dodd
, and Al Franken
He has been a major supporter of gun control
since John Lennon
was murdered in 1980.
In 2006 he was a featured speaker in a public service campaign sponsored by a UN conference to focus attention on trade of illicit arms, especially of small arms
and light weapons. Douglas made several appearances and offered his opinions:
A few years earlier, in 2003, Douglas hosted a "powerful film" on child soldiers and the impact of combat on children in countries such as Sierra Leone
. During the documentary film, Douglas interviewed children, and estimated that they were among 300,000 other children worldwide who have been conscripted or kidnapped and forced to fight. Of one such child he interviewed, Douglas stated, "After being kidnapped by a rebel group, he was tortured, drugged, and forced to commit atrocities."
Douglas discussed his role as a Messenger Peace for the UN:
Douglas lent his support for the campaign to release Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani
, the Iranian woman, who after having been convicted of committing adultery, was given a sentence of death by stoning
.
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (film)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a 1975 American drama film directed by Miloš Forman and based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey....
, and as Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the AFI
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
Life Achievement Award in 2009. He is the eldest of actor Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas is an American stage and film actor, film producer and author. His popular films include Out of the Past , Champion , Ace in the Hole , The Bad and the Beautiful , Lust for Life , Paths of Glory , Gunfight at the O.K...
's four sons.
Early life
Douglas was born in New Brunswick, New JerseyNew Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, USA. It is the county seat and the home of Rutgers University. The city is located on the Northeast Corridor rail line, southwest of Manhattan, on the southern bank of the Raritan River. At the 2010 United States Census, the population of...
, the first child of actor Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas is an American stage and film actor, film producer and author. His popular films include Out of the Past , Champion , Ace in the Hole , The Bad and the Beautiful , Lust for Life , Paths of Glory , Gunfight at the O.K...
and Bermudian
Bermudian
Bermudian or Bermudan may refer to:* Something of, or related to Bermuda* A person from Bermuda, or of Bermudian descent. For information about the Bermudian people, see Demographics of Bermuda and Culture of Bermuda. For specific Bermudians, see List of Bermudians.* Bermudian English, the variety...
actress Diana Dill
Diana Dill
Diana Love Dill is a Bermudian actress, active in the U.S., who has also appeared professionally under the names Diana Douglas and Diana Douglas Darrid.-Personal life:...
. His paternal grandparents, Harry Demsky (born Herschel Danielovitch) and Bryna Demsky (née Sanglel), were Jewish immigrants from Gomel in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
(at that time a part of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
). His mother and maternal grandparents, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Melville Dill
Thomas Melville Dill
Colonel Thomas Melville Dill OBE was a prominent Bermudian lawyer. He was born in Devonshire, in the British colony of Bermuda, on 23 December, 1876, to Thomas Newbold Dill and Mary Lea Smith Dill...
and Ruth Rapalje Neilson, were natives of Devonshire Parish, Bermuda
Devonshire Parish, Bermuda
-Location:It is located in the centre of the territory, close to the junction between the main part of the main island and the peninsula containing the capital, Hamilton, and Pembroke Parish . To the northeast, it is joined to Smith's Parish, and to the southwest it borders Paget Parish. As with...
. Thomas Dill served as Attorney General of Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
and was commanding officer of the Bermuda Militia Artillery
Bermuda Militia Artillery
The Bermuda Militia Artillery was a unit of part-time soldiers organised in 1895 as a reserve for the Royal Garrison Artillery detachment of the Regular Army garrison in Bermuda.-Foundation:...
. Douglas has a younger brother, Joel Douglas
Joel Douglas
Joel Douglas is an American movie producer.The second son of Kirk Douglas and Diana Dill, he was born one day after his mother's 24th birthday...
(born 1947), and two paternal half-brothers, Peter Douglas
Peter Douglas
Peter Vincent Douglas is an American television and film producer, a son of actor Kirk Douglas and his second wife, Anne Buydens. His middle name was given him in homage to Vincent van Gogh, the brilliant, tortured artist whom his father was playing in the film Lust for Life when he was born...
(born 1955) and Eric Douglas
Eric Douglas
Eric Anthony Douglas was an American actor who appeared in several movies and television shows and was also a stand-up comedian.-Early life and career:...
(1958–2004).
Education
Douglas attended The Choate Preparatory SchoolChoate Rosemary Hall
Choate Rosemary Hall is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school located in Wallingford, Connecticut...
(now Choate Rosemary Hall) in Wallingford, Connecticut
Wallingford, Connecticut
Wallingford is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 43,026 at the 2000 census.- History :Wallingford was established on October 10, 1667, when the Connecticut General Assembly authorized the "making of a village on the east river" to 38 planters and freemen...
. He received his B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in drama from the University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los...
in 1968, where he was also the Honorary President of the UCSB Alumni Association
Alumni association
An alumni association is an association of graduates or, more broadly, of former students. In the United Kingdom and the United States, alumni of universities, colleges, schools , fraternities, and sororities often form groups with alumni from the same organisation...
. He studied acting with Wynn Handman
Wynn Handman
Wynn Handman, is the Artistic Director of The American Place Theatre, which he co-founded with Sidney Lanier and Michael Tolan in 1963. His role in the theatre has been to seek out, encourage, train, and present new and exciting writing and acting talent and to develop and produce new plays by...
at The American Place Theater in New York City.
Early years
Douglas started his film career in the late 1960s and early 1970s, appearing in little known films like Hail, Hero!Hail, Hero!
Hail, Hero! is a 1969 film directed by David Miller, starring Michael Douglas, Deborah Winters and Peter Strauss, David Manber wrote the screenplay based on the novel by John Weston. The picture was produced by Harold D. Cohen...
and Summertree
Summertree
Summertree is a 1971 film directed by Anthony Newley. The screenplay was written by Edward Hume and Stephen Yafa, based on the 1967 play of the same name by Ron Cowen.-Plot:...
. His first significant role came in the TV series The Streets of San Francisco
The Streets of San Francisco
The Streets of San Francisco is a 1970s television police drama filmed on location in San Francisco, California, and produced by Quinn Martin Productions, with the first season produced in association with Warner Bros...
from 1972 to 1976, where he starred alongside Karl Malden
Karl Malden
Karl Malden was an American actor. In a career that spanned more than seven decades, he performed in such classic films as A Streetcar Named Desire, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, On the Waterfront and One-Eyed Jacks...
. Douglas later said that Malden became a "mentor" and someone he "admired and loved deeply". After Douglas left the show, he had a long association with his mentor until Malden's death on July 1, 2009. In 2004, Douglas presented Malden with the Monte Cristo Award of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
The Eugene O'Neill Memorial Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut is a 501 not-for-profit theater company founded in 1964 by George C. White. The O'Neill is the recipient of the . The O'Neill is home to the National Theater Institute , and several major theater conferences including the...
in Waterford, Connecticut
Waterford, Connecticut
Waterford is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. It is named after Waterford, Ireland. The population was 19,152 at the 2000 census. The town center is listed as a census-designated place .-Geography:...
, for the Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 1975, Douglas received from his father, Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas is an American stage and film actor, film producer and author. His popular films include Out of the Past , Champion , Ace in the Hole , The Bad and the Beautiful , Lust for Life , Paths of Glory , Gunfight at the O.K...
, the rights to the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (novel)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a novel written by Ken Kesey. Set in an Oregon asylum, the narrative serves as a study of the institutional process and the human mind, as well as a critique of Behaviorism and a celebration of humanistic principles. Written in 1959, the novel was adapted into a...
. Michael went on to produce the film of the same name
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (film)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a 1975 American drama film directed by Miloš Forman and based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey....
with Saul Zaentz
Saul Zaentz
Saul Zaentz is an American film producer and former record company executive. He has won the Academy Award for Best Picture three times and in 1996 was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award....
. Kirk Douglas considered playing the starring role himself, having starred in an earlier stage version, but chose against it, considering himself too old. The lead role went instead to a young Jack Nicholson
Jack Nicholson
John Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
, who would go on to win the Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
. Douglas won the Award for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
for producing the film.
After leaving Streets of San Francisco in 1976, Douglas played a hospital doctor in the medical thriller Coma
Coma (film)
Coma is a 1978 suspense film based on the novel of the same name by Robin Cook. The film rights were acquired by director Michael Crichton, and the movie was produced by Martin Erlichmann for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
(1978), and in 1979 he played the role of a troubled marathon runner in Running
Running (film)
Running is a 1979 drama/sports film directed by Steven Hilliard Stern. It is about the fictional American marathon runner and Olympics hopeful Michael Andropolis and his struggle to compete in the Olympic Games. It stars Michael Douglas and Susan Anspach....
. In 1979, he both produced and starred in The China Syndrome
The China Syndrome
The China Syndrome is a 1979 American thriller film that tells the story of a reporter and cameraman who discover safety coverups at a nuclear power plant. It stars Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas, Scott Brady, James Hampton, Peter Donat, Richard Herd, and Wilford Brimley.The film was...
, a dramatic film co-starring Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
and Jack Lemmon
Jack Lemmon
John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III was an American actor and musician. He starred in more than 60 films including Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, Mister Roberts , Days of Wine and Roses, The Great Race, Irma la Douce, The Odd Couple, Save the Tiger John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III (February 8, 1925June...
about a nuclear power plant accident (the Three Mile Island accident
Three Mile Island accident
The Three Mile Island accident was a core meltdown in Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania near Harrisburg, United States in 1979....
took place 12 days after the film's release). The film was considered "one of the most intelligent Hollywood films of the 1970s."
Success in Hollywood
Douglas' acting career was propelled to fame when he produced and starred in the 1984 romantic adventure comedy Romancing the StoneRomancing the Stone
Romancing the Stone is a 1984 American action-adventure romantic comedy. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, it stars Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. The film was followed by a 1985 sequel, The Jewel of the Nile....
. It also helped launch Kathleen Turner
Kathleen Turner
Mary Kathleen Turner is an American actress. She came to fame during the 1980s, after roles in the Hollywood films Body Heat, Peggy Sue Got Married, Romancing the Stone, The War of the Roses, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Prizzi's Honor...
to stardom, reintroduced Douglas as a capable leading man, and gave director Bob Zemeckis his first box-office success. It was followed a year later by a sequel, The Jewel of the Nile
The Jewel of the Nile
The Jewel of the Nile is a 1985 romantic adventure film, and a sequel to the 1984 film Romancing the Stone, with Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, and Danny DeVito reprising their roles...
, which he also produced.
The year 1987 saw Douglas star in the horror thriller Fatal Attraction
Fatal Attraction
Fatal Attraction is a 1987 American thriller blended with horror, directed by Adrian Lyne and stars Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Anne Archer. The film centers around a married man who has a weekend affair with a woman who refuses to allow it to end, resulting in emotional blackmail, stalking...
with Glenn Close
Glenn Close
Glenn Close is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and...
. That same year he played tycoon Gordon Gekko
Gordon Gekko
Gordon Gekko is the main antagonist of the 1987 film Wall Street and the antihero of the 2010 film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, both by director Oliver Stone...
in Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
's Wall Street for which he received an Academy Award as Best Actor. He reprised his role as Gekko in the sequel Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps in 2010, also directed by Stone.
Douglas again paired with Kathleen Turner for the 1989 film The War of the Roses
The War of The Roses
The War of the Roses is a novel by Warren Adler.http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9806E0D91138F93BA15755C0A967948260-Plot introduction:...
, which also starred Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito
Daniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...
. In 1989, he starred in Ridley Scott
Ridley Scott
Sir Ridley Scott is an English film director and producer. His most famous films include The Duellists , Alien , Blade Runner , Legend , Thelma & Louise , G. I...
's international police crime drama Black Rain opposite Andy García
Andy García
Andrés Arturo García Menéndez , professionally known as Andy García, is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, Internal Affairs and When a Man Loves a Woman...
and Kate Capshaw
Kate Capshaw
Kate Capshaw is an American actress. She is known for her role as Willie Scott in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. She is married to Steven Spielberg.-Early life:...
. The film was shot in Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
In 1992, Douglas had another successful starring role when he appeared alongside Sharon Stone
Sharon Stone
Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct...
in the film Basic Instinct
Basic Instinct
Basic Instinct is a 1992 erotic thriller directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas, and starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone....
. The movie was a box office hit, and sparked controversy over its depictions of bisexuality and lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
ism. In 1994, Douglas and Demi Moore
Demi Moore
Demi Guynes Kutcher , known professionally as Demi Moore, is an American actress. After minor roles in film and a role in the soap opera General Hospital, Moore established her career in films such as St...
starred in the hit movie Disclosure
Disclosure (film)
Disclosure is a 1994 thriller directed by Barry Levinson, starring Michael Douglas and Demi Moore. It is based on Michael Crichton's novel of the same name.The cast also includes Donald Sutherland, Rosemary Forsyth and Dennis Miller...
focusing on the topic of sexual harassment
Sexual harassment
Sexual harassment, is intimidation, bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. In some contexts or circumstances, sexual harassment is illegal. It includes a range of behavior from seemingly mild transgressions and...
with Douglas playing a man harassed by his new female boss. Other popular films he starred during these decade were Falling Down
Falling Down
Falling Down is a 1993 crime-drama film directed by Joel Schumacher. The film stars Michael Douglas in the lead role of William Foster , a divorcee and unemployed former defense engineer...
, The American President, The Ghost and the Darkness
The Ghost and the Darkness
The Ghost and the Darkness is a 1996 adventure film starring Michael Douglas and Val Kilmer set in Africa at the end of the 19th century.It was directed by Stephen Hopkins and the screenplay was written by William Goldman....
, The Game
The Game (film)
The Game is a 1997 neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher, starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, and produced by Polygram. It tells the story of an investment banker who is given a mysterious gift: participation in a game that integrates in strange ways with his life...
(directed by David Fincher
David Fincher
David Andrew Leo Fincher is an American film and music video director. Known for his dark and stylish thrillers, such as Seven , The Game , Fight Club , Panic Room , and Zodiac , Fincher received Academy Award nominations for Best Director for his 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and...
), and a remake of Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's classic - Dial M for Murder
Dial M for Murder
Dial M for Murder is a 1954 American thriller film adapted from a successful stage play by Frederick Knott, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, and Robert Cummings. The movie was released by the Warner Bros...
- titled A Perfect Murder
A Perfect Murder
A Perfect Murder is a 1998 American thriller film directed by Andrew Davis and starring Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow and Viggo Mortensen. It is a modern remake of Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 film, Dial M for Murder, though the characters' names are all changed, and over half the plot is completely...
. In 1998, Douglas received the Crystal Globe
Crystal Globe
Crystal Globe is the main award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, first given in the city of Karlovy Vary of the Czech Republic, in 1948.In the international competition of films, IFFKV presents the following awards:...
award for outstanding artistic contribution to world cinema at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary , Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival gained worldwide recognition over the past years and has become one of Europe's major film events....
.
In 2000, Douglas starred in Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh is an American film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor, and an Academy Award-winning film director. He is best known for directing commercial Hollywood films like Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the remake of Ocean's Eleven, but he has also directed smaller less...
's critically acclaimed film Traffic
Traffic (2000 film)
Traffic is a 2000 American crime drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan. It explores the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives: a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker. Their stories are edited together throughout the film, although some of the...
, opposite Benicio del Toro
Benicio del Toro
Benicio Monserrate Rafael del Toro Sánchez is a Puerto Rican and Spanish actor and film producer. He won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a BAFTA Award for his role as Javier Rodríguez in Traffic . He is also known for his roles as Fred Fenster in The Usual...
and future wife Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones, CBE, is a British actress. She began her career on stage at an early age. After starring in a number of United Kingdom and United States television films and small roles in films, she came to prominence with roles in Hollywood movies such as the 1998 action film The Mask of...
. That same year, he also received critical acclaim for his role in Wonder Boys
Wonder Boys
Wonder Boys is a 1995 novel by the American writer Michael Chabon. It was adapted into a film in 2000.-Plot summary:Pittsburgh professor and author Grady Tripp is working on an unwieldy 2,611 page manuscript that is meant to be the follow-up to his successful, award-winning novel The Land...
as a professor and novelist suffering from writer's block
Writer's block
Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing as a profession, in which an author loses the ability to produce new work. The condition varies widely in intensity. It can be trivial, a temporary difficulty in dealing with the task at hand. At the other extreme, some "blocked"...
. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama as well as several other awards from critics.
Types of roles
According to film historian and critic David ThomsonDavid Thomson (film critic)
David Thomson is a film critic and historian based in the United States and the author of more than 20 books, including The New Biographical Dictionary of Film.-Career:...
, Douglas was capable of playing characters who were "weak, culpable, morally indolent, compromised, and greedy for illicit sensation without losing that basic probity or potential for ethical character that we require of a hero." Critic and author Rob Edelman points out similarities in many of Douglas's roles, writing that in some of his leading films, he personified the "contemporary, Caucasian middle-to-upper-class American male who finds himself the brunt of female anger because of real or imagined sexual slights."
These themes of male victimization are seen in films such as Fatal Attraction
Fatal Attraction
Fatal Attraction is a 1987 American thriller blended with horror, directed by Adrian Lyne and stars Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Anne Archer. The film centers around a married man who has a weekend affair with a woman who refuses to allow it to end, resulting in emotional blackmail, stalking...
(1987), with Glenn Close
Glenn Close
Glenn Close is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and...
, War of the Roses
The War of the Roses (film)
The War of the Roses is a 1989 American comedy film based upon the 1981 novel The War of the Roses by Warren Adler. It is a black comedy about a wealthy couple with a seemingly perfect marriage. When their marriage begins to fall apart, material possessions become the center of an outrageous and...
(1989), with Kathleen Turner
Kathleen Turner
Mary Kathleen Turner is an American actress. She came to fame during the 1980s, after roles in the Hollywood films Body Heat, Peggy Sue Got Married, Romancing the Stone, The War of the Roses, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Prizzi's Honor...
, Basic Instinct
Basic Instinct
Basic Instinct is a 1992 erotic thriller directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas, and starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone....
(1992), Sharon Stone
Sharon Stone
Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct...
, Falling Down
Falling Down
Falling Down is a 1993 crime-drama film directed by Joel Schumacher. The film stars Michael Douglas in the lead role of William Foster , a divorcee and unemployed former defense engineer...
(1993), and Disclosure
Disclosure (film)
Disclosure is a 1994 thriller directed by Barry Levinson, starring Michael Douglas and Demi Moore. It is based on Michael Crichton's novel of the same name.The cast also includes Donald Sutherland, Rosemary Forsyth and Dennis Miller...
(1994), with Demi Moore
Demi Moore
Demi Guynes Kutcher , known professionally as Demi Moore, is an American actress. After minor roles in film and a role in the soap opera General Hospital, Moore established her career in films such as St...
. For his characters in films such as these, "any kind of sexual contact with someone other than his mate and the mother of his children is destined to come at a costly price." Edelman describes his characters as the "Everyman who must contend with, and be victimized by, these women and their raging, psychotic sexuality."
Conversely, Douglas also played powerful characters with dominating personalities equally well: as Gordon Gekko, in both versions of Wall Street, he acted the role of a "greedy yuppie personification of the Me generation," convinced that "greed is good;" in Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile, he played an idealistic soldier of fortune; in The Star Chamber
The Star Chamber
The Star Chamber is a 1983 American thriller film written by Roderick Taylor and directed by Peter Hyams. It stars Michael Douglas and Hal Holbrook...
(1983), he was a court judge fed up with an inadequate legal system, leading him to become involved with a vigilante group; and in Black Rain (1989), he proved he could also play a Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
-like action hero as a New York City cop.
Actor and producer
Having become recognized as both a successful producer and actor, he describes himself as "an actor first and a producer second." He has explained why he enjoys both functions:"I love the fact that on one side, with acting, you can be a child — acting is wonderful for its innocence and the fun. . . On the other side, producing is fun for all the adult kinds of things you do. You deal in business, you deal with the creative forces. As an adult who continues to get older, you like the adult risks. It's flying without a net, taking chances and learning. I was never good in economics or business — had no business background, you know, and I like it."
He has also offered reasons why he has become successful in both acting and producing:
"I think I'm a chameleon. I think it's something that I possibly inherited early on as a child going back and forth between two families. I know that whether it's right or wrong, I have an ability to sort of fit into a lot of different situations and make people feel relatively comfortable in a wide range without giving up all my moral values. I think that same chameleonlike quality can transfer into films. I think if you can remember the reason you got involved with it in the first place and try to keep that impulsive, instinctive feeling even when you're being beaten down or exhausted or waylaid, you'll be successful."
Recent years
It Runs in the Family (2003 film)
It Runs in the Family is a 2003 comedy-drama movie directed by Fred Schepisi and starring three generations of the Douglas family: Kirk Douglas, his son Michael Douglas, and Michael's son Cameron Douglas, who play three generations of a family....
, which featured three generations of his family (his parents, Kirk and Diana, as well as his own son, Cameron
Cameron Douglas
Cameron Morrell Douglas is an American actor.- Early life and family :Douglas was born in Santa Barbara, California, the elder son of actor Michael Douglas and only child of Diandra Morrell Douglas and grandson of actor Kirk Douglas and Bermudian actress Diana Dill. He has appeared in four films:...
). The film, although a labor of love, was not successful, critically or at the box office. Douglas starred in the solid commercial action flick Don't Say a Word
Don't Say a Word
Don't Say a Word is a 2001 psychological thriller film starring Michael Douglas, Brittany Murphy and Sean Bean based on the novel of the same title by Andrew Klavan...
, then the poorly received action-thriller The Sentinel
The Sentinel (2006 film)
The Sentinel is a 2006 action thriller film about a veteran United States Secret Service bodyguard who is suspected as a traitor after an attempted assassination of the president reveals that someone within the Service is providing information to the assassins...
in 2006. During that time, he also guest-appeared on the episode, "Fagel Attraction
Fagel Attraction
"Fagel Attraction" is the twenty-third episode of the fourth season of the American television series Will & Grace. It was written by Jenji Kohan and directed by series producer James Burrows. The episode originally aired on the National Broadcasting Company in the United States on April 25, 2002...
", of the popular television sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Will and Grace, as a gay cop attracted to Will Truman
Will Truman
William Pierce "Will" Truman is a fictional character on the American sitcom Will & Grace, portrayed by Eric McCormack. He is a gay lawyer who lives in the Upper West Side of New York City with his best friend, Grace Adler.-Fictional character history:...
(Eric McCormack
Eric McCormack
Eric James McCormack is a Canadian American actor, musician, writer and producer. Born in Toronto, he began his acting career performing in school plays at Stephen Leacock Collegiate Institute High School...
); the performance earned Douglas an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Show.
Douglas was approached for Basic Instinct 2
Basic Instinct 2
Basic Instinct 2, also known as Basic Instinct 2: Risk Addiction, is a 2006 German/British/American/Spanish thriller film and the sequel to 1992's Basic Instinct. The film was directed by Michael Caton-Jones and produced by Mario Kassar, Joel B. Michaels, and Andrew G. Vajna. The screenplay was by...
, but he declined to participate in the project. He said:
"Yes, they asked me to do it a while ago, I thought we had done it very effectively; [Paul] Verhoeven is a pretty good director. I haven't seen the sequel. I've only done one sequel in my life, The Jewel of the NileThe Jewel of the NileThe Jewel of the Nile is a 1985 romantic adventure film, and a sequel to the 1984 film Romancing the Stone, with Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, and Danny DeVito reprising their roles...
, from Romancing The StoneRomancing the StoneRomancing the Stone is a 1984 American action-adventure romantic comedy. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, it stars Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. The film was followed by a 1985 sequel, The Jewel of the Nile....
. Besides, there were age issues, you know? Sharon still looks fabulous. The script was pretty good. Good for her, she's in her late-40s, and there are not a lot of parts around. The first one was probably the best picture of her career—it certainly made her career and she was great in it".
Future engagements
Douglas was set to star in Tragic Indifference, a courtroom thriller based on a landmark liability case against Ford Motor CompanyFord Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
, according to Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
. Douglas will play the attorney who took Ford to court on behalf of a single mother from Texas who was paralyzed and nearly died after an accident. The trial exposed the automaker's indifference to flaws in its Sport Utility Vehicle
Sport utility vehicle
A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...
s (SUV). The movie will be based on Adam Penenberg
Adam Penenberg
Adam L. Penenberg is a US investigative journalist best known for uncovering the journalistic fraud of The New Republic reporter Stephen Glass in 1998. He was portrayed by Steve Zahn in the movie Shattered Glass...
's 2003 book of the same name. Douglas will play Attorney Tab Turner, who represented Donna Bailey after the Ford Explorer
Ford Explorer
The Ford Explorer is a sport-utility vehicle sold in North America and built by the Ford Motor Company since 1990, as a replacement for the smaller but related Ford Bronco II. It is manufactured in Chicago, Illinois...
SUV she was riding in rolled over following a Firestone
Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company is an American tire company founded by Harvey Firestone in 1900 to supply pneumatic tires for wagons, buggies, and other forms of wheeled transportation common in the era. Firestone soon saw the huge potential for marketing tires for automobiles. The company...
tire failure.
On December 17, 2007 it was announced that Douglas would announce the introduction to NBC Nightly News
NBC Nightly News
NBC Nightly News is the flagship daily evening television news program for NBC News and broadcasts. NBC Nightly News has aired from Studio 3B, located on floors 3 of the NBC Studios is the headquarters of the GE Building forms the centerpiece of 30th Rockefeller Center it is located in the center...
, some two years after Howard Reig
Howard Reig
Howard Reig was an American radio and television announcer. His last name was pronounced "reeg."-Personal life:...
, the previous announcer, retired.
Family
After filming SummertreeSummertree
Summertree is a 1971 film directed by Anthony Newley. The screenplay was written by Edward Hume and Stephen Yafa, based on the 1967 play of the same name by Ron Cowen.-Plot:...
(1971), he began dating Brenda Vaccaro
Brenda Vaccaro
Brenda Buell Vaccaro is an American stage, television and film actress.-Early life:Vaccaro was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Italian American parents Christine M. and Mario A. Vaccaro , both of whom were pioneers in Italian cuisine...
. The relationship lasted for about six years.
In March 1977, 33 year old Douglas married 19 year old Diandra Luker, the daughter of an Austrian diplomat. They had one son, Cameron
Cameron Douglas
Cameron Morrell Douglas is an American actor.- Early life and family :Douglas was born in Santa Barbara, California, the elder son of actor Michael Douglas and only child of Diandra Morrell Douglas and grandson of actor Kirk Douglas and Bermudian actress Diana Dill. He has appeared in four films:...
, born in 1978. In 1997 Diandra filed for divorce and was awarded $45 million as her settlement.
Dating since March 1999, Douglas married Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
actress Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones, CBE, is a British actress. She began her career on stage at an early age. After starring in a number of United Kingdom and United States television films and small roles in films, she came to prominence with roles in Hollywood movies such as the 1998 action film The Mask of...
on November 18, 2000. They were both born on September 25, though 25 years apart. Zeta-Jones says that when they met in Deauville
Deauville
Deauville is a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.With its racecourse, harbour, international film festival, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino and sumptuous hotels, Deauville is regarded as the "queen of the Norman beaches" and...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Douglas used the line "I want to father your children." They have two children, Dylan Michael (born August 8, 2000) and Carys Zeta (born April 20, 2003).
They planned on renewing their wedding vows in 2010 as part of their 10th wedding anniversary. The idea was hers, and came after Douglas was found to have advanced stages of cancer. One report notes that "Michael was in tears when she suggested it to him," and he sees it as a “wonderful expression of love.”
Douglas, the son of a Jewish father and an Anglican mother, has declared no religious affiliation.
Citizenship
Douglas is a U.S. citizen by birth in the United States and has Bermudian StatusLaw of Bermuda
The law of Bermuda is based on the common law legal system of England and Wales.-Sources of Law:* The law of England and Wales as it stood in 1620 - of all kinds: common law, equity and statute - became the law of Bermuda at that time, and it remains so to the extent that other sources have not...
through his mother's birth in Bermuda.
Skiing accident and rehab
In 1980, Douglas was involved in a serious skiingSkiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
accident which sidelined his acting career for three years. In September 1992, the same year Basic Instinct came out, he underwent treatment for alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
and drug addiction at Sierra Tucson Center.
Legal problems
In 1997, New York caddyCaddy
In golf, a caddy is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives insightful advice and moral support. A good caddy is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the best strategy in playing it. This includes knowing overall yardage, pin...
James Parker sued Douglas for $25 million. Parker accused Douglas of hitting him in the groin
Groin
In human anatomy, the groin areas are the two creases at the junction of the torso with the legs, on either side of the pubic area. This is also known as the medial compartment of the thigh. A pulled groin muscle usually refers to a painful injury sustained by straining the hip adductor muscles...
with an errant golf ball
Golf ball
A golf ball is a ball designed to be used in the game of golf.Under the Rules of Golf, a golf ball weighs no more than 1.620 oz , has a diameter not less than 1.680 in , and performs within specified velocity, distance, and symmetry limits...
, causing Parker to lose a testicle
Testicle
The testicle is the male gonad in animals. Like the ovaries to which they are homologous, testes are components of both the reproductive system and the endocrine system...
and his job. The case was later settled out of court.
Stalking
In 2004, Douglas and Zeta-Jones took legal action against stalkerStalker
-In media:* Stalker , a 1995 dark ambient album by Lustmord & Robert Rich, inspired by the film* Stalker , an episode of the American television series CSI...
Dawnette Knight, who was accused of sending violent letters to the couple that contained graphic threats on Zeta-Jones' life. Testifying, Zeta-Jones said the threats left her so shaken she feared a nervous breakdown. Knight claimed she had been in love with Douglas and admitted to the offences, which took place between October 2003 and May 2004. She was sentenced to three years in prison.
Health problems
It was announced on August 16, 2010, that Douglas was suffering from throat cancer and will undergo chemotherapyChemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
and radiation
Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy , radiation oncology, or radiotherapy , sometimes abbreviated to XRT or DXT, is the medical use of ionizing radiation, generally as part of cancer treatment to control malignant cells.Radiation therapy is commonly applied to the cancerous tumor because of its ability to control...
treatment. On August 31, 2010 Douglas appeared on Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
and confirmed that the cancer was at an advanced stage IV
Cancer staging
The stage of a cancer is a description of the extent the cancer has spread. The stage often takes into account the size of a tumor, how deeply it has penetrated, whether it has invaded adjacent organs, how many lymph nodes it has metastasized to , and whether it has spread to distant organs...
. Douglas attributed the cancer to a combination of stress, his previous alcohol abuse, and years of heavy smoking.
In November 2010, Douglas was put on a special weight gain diet by his doctors due to the excessive weight loss leaving him weak. On January 11, 2011, he said in an interview that the tumor was gone. He admitted that the illness and aggressive treatment had caused him to lose 32 lbs in weight. He will have to have monthly screenings because there is a very high chance that the cancer could return over the course of the next two to three years. Although Douglas has described the cancer as throat cancer, many doctors believe he was actually diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer
Oropharyngeal cancer
Oropharyngeal cancer is a disease which malignant cells form in the tissue of oropharynx. Oropharynx is a middle part of the throat which includes the base of the tongue, the tonsils, the soft palate, and the walls of the pharynx.-Studies:...
.
Activism
Political activities
Douglas and Zeta-Jones hosted the annual Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
concert in Oslo, Norway, on December 11, 2003. They acted as co-masters of ceremony in the concert celebrating the award given to Iranian human rights activist Shirin Ebadi
Shirin Ebadi
Shirin Ebadi is an Iranian lawyer, a former judge and human rights activist and founder of Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. On 10 October 2003, Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her significant and pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights, especially women's,...
. In 2006, Douglas was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...
(D.Litt.) from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
He is an advocate of nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament refers to both the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons and to the end state of a nuclear-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated....
, a supporter of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation is a non-profit international organization on the roster in consultative status to the United Nations Economic and Social Council...
, and sits on the Board of Directors of the anti-war grantmaking foundation Ploughshares Fund
Ploughshares Fund
The Ploughshares Fund is a public grantmaking foundation that supports initiatives to prevent the spread and use of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons and other weapons of war, and to prevent conflicts that could lead to the use of weapons of mass destruction. Ploughshares is a 501...
. In 1998, he was appointed UN Messenger of Peace by Secretary-General Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
. He is a notable Democrat and has donated money to Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, Christopher Dodd
Christopher Dodd
Christopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
, and Al Franken
Al Franken
Alan Stuart "Al" Franken is the junior United States Senator from Minnesota. He is a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which affiliates with the national Democratic Party....
He has been a major supporter of gun control
Gun control
Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...
since John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
was murdered in 1980.
In 2006 he was a featured speaker in a public service campaign sponsored by a UN conference to focus attention on trade of illicit arms, especially of small arms
Small arms
Small arms is a term of art used by armed forces to denote infantry weapons an individual soldier may carry. The description is usually limited to revolvers, pistols, submachine guns, carbines, assault rifles, battle rifles, multiple barrel firearms, sniper rifles, squad automatic weapons, light...
and light weapons. Douglas made several appearances and offered his opinions:
- "The conference is an opportunity for UN member states to build on the Program of Action and to encourage countries to strengthen their laws on the illicit trade, . . . an issue that affects us all . . .[and] while owning guns is a legal right in most countries, the illegal trade in guns continues to fuel conflict, crime and violence."
A few years earlier, in 2003, Douglas hosted a "powerful film" on child soldiers and the impact of combat on children in countries such as Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
. During the documentary film, Douglas interviewed children, and estimated that they were among 300,000 other children worldwide who have been conscripted or kidnapped and forced to fight. Of one such child he interviewed, Douglas stated, "After being kidnapped by a rebel group, he was tortured, drugged, and forced to commit atrocities."
Douglas discussed his role as a Messenger Peace for the UN:
- "I'm in an enviable position . . . When I talk about movies I can talk about messages of peace, and infuse them into the entertainment pages."
Humanitarian initiatives
In 2009 Douglas joined the project Soldiers of Peace, a movie against all wars and for global peace.Douglas lent his support for the campaign to release Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani , is an Iranian woman who has gained the attention of human rights groups and people throughout the world for a conviction of adultery and accompanying sentence of death by stoning. Since 2006, she has been imprisoned and under a death sentence in Tabriz, Iran after being...
, the Iranian woman, who after having been convicted of committing adultery, was given a sentence of death by stoning
Stoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | Cast a Giant Shadow Cast a Giant Shadow Cast a Giant Shadow is a 1966 big budget, action movie based on the life of Colonel Mickey Marcus starring Kirk Douglas and Senta Berger. Yul Brynner, John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, and Angie Dickinson also appear in supporting roles... |
Jeep driver | |
| 1969 | Hail, Hero! Hail, Hero! Hail, Hero! is a 1969 film directed by David Miller, starring Michael Douglas, Deborah Winters and Peter Strauss, David Manber wrote the screenplay based on the novel by John Weston. The picture was produced by Harold D. Cohen... |
Carl Dixon | Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Male Newcomer Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign... |
| 1970 | Adam at Six A.M. Adam at Six A.M. Adam at 6 A.M. is a 1970 film directed by Robert Scheerer. The film did not receive much attention when it was released, but was the second starring role for Michael Douglas... |
Adam Gaines | |
| 1971 | Summertree Summertree Summertree is a 1971 film directed by Anthony Newley. The screenplay was written by Edward Hume and Stephen Yafa, based on the 1967 play of the same name by Ron Cowen.-Plot:... |
Jerry | |
| 1972 | Napoleon and Samantha Napoleon and Samantha Napoleon and Samantha is a 1972 family/adventure/drama directed by Bernard McEveety and written by Stewart Raffill. Filmed in and around John Day, Oregon, it stars Michael Douglas, Jodie Foster, and Johnny Whitaker.-Plot:... |
Danny | |
| 1975 | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (film) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a 1975 American drama film directed by Miloš Forman and based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey.... |
Won As Producer Academy Award for Best Picture Academy Award for Best Picture The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only... BAFTA Award for Best Film BAFTA Award for Best Film This page lists the winners and nominees for the BAFTA Award for Best Film, BAFTA Award for Best Film not in the English Language and Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film for each year, in addition to the retired earlier versions of those awards... Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama This page lists the winners and nominees for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama, since its institution in 1951. The organizer, Hollywood Foreign Press Association , is an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications... |
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| 1978 | Coma Coma (film) Coma is a 1978 suspense film based on the novel of the same name by Robin Cook. The film rights were acquired by director Michael Crichton, and the movie was produced by Martin Erlichmann for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer... |
Dr. Mark Bellows | |
| 1979 | Running Running (film) Running is a 1979 drama/sports film directed by Steven Hilliard Stern. It is about the fictional American marathon runner and Olympics hopeful Michael Andropolis and his struggle to compete in the Olympic Games. It stars Michael Douglas and Susan Anspach.... |
Michael Andropolis | Nominated — Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actor Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actor The Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actor was awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television from 1980 to 1983, for the best performance by non-Canadian actor in a Canadian film.... |
| 1979 | Richard Adams | Also Producer Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Film BAFTA Award for Best Film This page lists the winners and nominees for the BAFTA Award for Best Film, BAFTA Award for Best Film not in the English Language and Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film for each year, in addition to the retired earlier versions of those awards... Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama This page lists the winners and nominees for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama, since its institution in 1951. The organizer, Hollywood Foreign Press Association , is an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications... |
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| 1980 | It's My Turn It's My Turn (film) It's My Turn is a 1980 romantic comedy-drama film starring Jill Clayburgh, Michael Douglas, and Charles Grodin.The film was directed by Claudia Weill and written by Eleanor Bergstein... |
Ben Lewin | |
| 1983 | Superior Court Judge Steven R. Hardin | ||
| 1984 | Romancing the Stone Romancing the Stone Romancing the Stone is a 1984 American action-adventure romantic comedy. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, it stars Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. The film was followed by a 1985 sequel, The Jewel of the Nile.... |
Jack Colton | Also Producer Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy |
| 1985 | Zach | ||
| 1985 | Jack Colton | Also Producer | |
| 1987 | Fatal Attraction Fatal Attraction Fatal Attraction is a 1987 American thriller blended with horror, directed by Adrian Lyne and stars Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Anne Archer. The film centers around a married man who has a weekend affair with a woman who refuses to allow it to end, resulting in emotional blackmail, stalking... |
Dan Gallagher | Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Best Actor in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.-Superlatives:... |
| 1987 | Wall Street | Gordon Gekko Gordon Gekko Gordon Gekko is the main antagonist of the 1987 film Wall Street and the antihero of the 2010 film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, both by director Oliver Stone... |
Academy Award for Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... David di Donatello for Best Actor David di Donatello David di Donatello, named after Donatello's David, is a movie award assigned each year for cinematic performances and production by Ente David di Donatello, part of Accademia del Cinema Italiano. It is the Italian equivalent to the Academy Award. There are 24 categories as of 2006.- History :The... Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Kansas City Film Critics Circle to honor the best achievements in acting.-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:*... Nastro d'Argento best Foreign Actor Nastro d'Argento The Nastro d'Argento is a movie award assigned each year, since 1946, for cinematic performances and production by Sindacato Nazionale dei Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani, the association of Italian film critics... National Board of Review Award for Best Actor National Board of Review Award for Best Actor An incomplete list of the winners of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Award for Best Actor :-1940s:-1950s:-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... |
| 1989 | Oliver Rose | Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... |
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| 1989 | Black Rain | Det. Sgt. Nick Conklin | |
| 1992 | Basic Instinct Basic Instinct Basic Instinct is a 1992 erotic thriller directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas, and starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone.... |
Nick Curran | Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Performance MTV Movie Award for Best Performance This is a following list of the MTV Movie Award winners and nominees for Best Performance from 1992 onward. In all but two years, the awards are separated into Male and Female categories.-1992:... Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo This is a following list of the MTV Movie Award winners and nominees for Best On-Screen Duo. It was later changed to Best On-Screen Team in 2001. This award was last given out in 2006.-References:... shared with Sharon Stone Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct... |
| 1992 | Shining Through Shining Through Shining Through is a 1992 British-American World War II film drama, directed and written by David Seltzer and starring Michael Douglas and Melanie Griffith, with Liam Neeson, Joely Richardson and John Gielgud in supporting roles. Although based on the novel of the same name by Susan Isaacs, the... |
Ed Leland | |
| 1992 | Oliver Stone: Inside Out | Himself | Documentary |
| 1993 | Falling Down Falling Down Falling Down is a 1993 crime-drama film directed by Joel Schumacher. The film stars Michael Douglas in the lead role of William Foster , a divorcee and unemployed former defense engineer... |
William "D-Fens" Foster | |
| 1994 | Disclosure Disclosure (film) Disclosure is a 1994 thriller directed by Barry Levinson, starring Michael Douglas and Demi Moore. It is based on Michael Crichton's novel of the same name.The cast also includes Donald Sutherland, Rosemary Forsyth and Dennis Miller... |
Tom Sanders | |
| 1995 | President President of the United States The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.... Andrew Shepherd |
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... |
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| 1996 | Charles Remington | Also Executive Producer | |
| 1997 | Nicholas Van Orton | ||
| 1998 | Steven Taylor | ||
| 1999 | One Day in September One Day in September One Day in September is a 1999 documentary film directed by Kevin Macdonald examining the 5 September 1972 murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany... |
Narrator | Documentary |
| 1999 | Get Bruce Get Bruce Get Bruce is a 1999 documentary film starring Bruce Vilanch, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams, Lily Tomlin, Shirley MacLaine, Steven Seagal, Carol Burnett and Michael Douglas. The film is directed by Andrew J. Kuehn.-Synopsis:... |
Himself | Documentary |
| 2000 | Wonder Boys Wonder Boys (film) Wonder Boys is a dark comedy film based on the 1995 novel of the same title by Michael Chabon. Directed by Curtis Hanson, it stars Michael Douglas as professor Grady Tripp, a novelist who teaches creative writing at an unnamed Pittsburgh university... |
Professor Grady Tripp | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor is one of the annual awards given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:... Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy The Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy is one of the annual Satellite Awards given by the International Press Academy.- 1990s :- 2000s :- 2010s :... SEFCA Award for Best Actor Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Southeastern Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given by the Southeastern Film Critics Association to honor the finest achievements in filmmaking.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Best Actor in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.-Superlatives:... Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:... Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... Nominated — LVFCS Award for Best Actor Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Las Vegas Film Critics Society to honor the best actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... (also for Traffic Traffic (2000 film) Traffic is a 2000 American crime drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan. It explores the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives: a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker. Their stories are edited together throughout the film, although some of the... ) Nominated — London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year in an annual award given by the London Film Critics Circle.-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated — Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an annual film award given by the Online Film Critics Society to honor the best lead actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated — Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is an award given by the Phoenix Film Critics Society to honor the finest achievements in filmmaking.-2000s:-2010s:... |
| 2000 | Traffic Traffic (2000 film) Traffic is a 2000 American crime drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan. It explores the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives: a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker. Their stories are edited together throughout the film, although some of the... |
Robert Wakefield | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated — Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Las Vegas Film Critics Society to honor the best actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... (also for Wonder Boys Wonder Boys (film) Wonder Boys is a dark comedy film based on the 1995 novel of the same title by Michael Chabon. Directed by Curtis Hanson, it stars Michael Douglas as professor Grady Tripp, a novelist who teaches creative writing at an unnamed Pittsburgh university... ) |
| 2001 | Don't Say a Word Don't Say a Word Don't Say a Word is a 2001 psychological thriller film starring Michael Douglas, Brittany Murphy and Sean Bean based on the novel of the same title by Andrew Klavan... |
Dr. Nathan R. Conrad | |
| 2001 | In Search of Peace | Narrator | Documentary |
| 2001 | One Night at McCool's One Night at McCool's One Night at McCool's is a 2001 American dark comedy/neo-noir film, directed by Harald Zwart and starring Liv Tyler, Matt Dillon, Michael Douglas, John Goodman, Paul Reiser, Reba McEntire and Andrew Dice Clay.-Plot:... |
Mr. Burmeister | Also Producer |
| 2003 | Steve Tobias | ||
| 2003 | It Runs in the Family It Runs in the Family (2003 film) It Runs in the Family is a 2003 comedy-drama movie directed by Fred Schepisi and starring three generations of the Douglas family: Kirk Douglas, his son Michael Douglas, and Michael's son Cameron Douglas, who play three generations of a family.... |
Alex Gromberg | |
| 2003 | Direct Order | Narrator | Documentary |
| 2003 | Tell Them Who You Are | Himself | Documentary |
| 2006 | You, Me and Dupree You, Me and Dupree You, Me and Dupree is a 2006 romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, written by Mike LeSieur, and produced by Mary Parent, Scott Stuber, and Owen Wilson.... |
Mr. Thompson | |
| 2006 | Pete Garrison | Also Producer | |
| 2007 | King of California King of California King of California is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Mike Cahill. It is his debut as a screenwriter and director. The film premiered on January 24, 2007 at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival and opened in limited release in North America on September 14, 2007... |
Charlie | |
| 2009 | Ghosts of Girlfriends Past | Uncle Wayne | |
| 2009 | Beyond a Reasonable Doubt Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (2009 film) Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, a 2009 American film, is a remake of the 1956 film of the same name by Fritz Lang. Written, directed and filmed by Peter Hyams, the new version starred Michael Douglas and Amber Tamblyn. The production was announced in February 2008 and filming began the following... |
Mark Hunter | |
| 2009 | Solitary Man Solitary Man (film) Solitary Man is a 2009 American film co-directed by Brian Koppelman and David Levien. The film stars Michael Douglas, Susan Sarandon, Jenna Fischer, Jesse Eisenberg, Mary-Louise Parker and Danny DeVito.-Plot:... |
Ben Kalmen | Nominated — Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association to honor the best achievements in filmmaking.-1990s:*1993: Anthony Hopkins - The Remains of the Day*1994:... |
| 2010 | Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps | Gordon Gekko Gordon Gekko Gordon Gekko is the main antagonist of the 1987 film Wall Street and the antihero of the 2010 film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, both by director Oliver Stone... |
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture |
| 2012 | Haywire Haywire (film) Haywire is an upcoming action film directed by Steven Soderbergh, starring Gina Carano, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Ewan McGregor, Channing Tatum and Michael Fassbender.-Plot:... |
Oliver | Post-production |
External links
- "The Films of Michael Douglas", video compilation of film clips, 5 minutes