Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner had great chemistry in their hit Romancing the Stone. That connection continued after the cameras stopped rolling, too.
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Douglas shared an excerpt of his new memoir with PEOPLE, revealing that he and Turner became lovers while making the 1984 adventure comedy.
Audiences Believed That Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner Were in a Relationship
When Douglas began working on Romancing the Stone, his marriage to then-wife Diandra Douglas, with whom he shares his son Cameron, was in shambles. As Michael writes, he and Diandra were both having affairs, and the couple had separated.
Michael then met Turner over lunch to talk about her role as romance novelist Joan Wilder. He wrote that he "instantly liked her" and they were "immediately attracted to each other."
"The official story went as follows: Yes, we confessed, we had amazing chemistry. Yes, we were both, as Kathleen said, 'terrible flirts,' and yes, we were both tempted, but nothing ever happened between us," he wrote. "That was a lie."
Michael said he lied to protect his wife and son. Turner kept up the ruse four decades later during interviews for Douglas' Netflix sitcom The Kominsky Method. And while the two stars managed to keep their relationship a secret from their co-stars and director, Diandra had her suspicions.
"At some point, she was alone with Kathleen and made it clear to her that we were still married," Michael wrote. "Her view of the terms of our separation was different from mine. This gave Kathleen pause. She didn't want to interfere."
The Two Have Remained Friends
Michael went back to Diandra "for Cameron" and ended things with Turner. Still, the two remained friends. They have worked together on The Jewel of the Nile, The War of the Roses, and The Kominsky Method.
Michael has been married to Catherine Zeta-Jones since 2000. Turner married real estate mogul Jay Weiss in 1984. They divorced in 2007.
Michael wrote that he asked Turner if he could include the story in his book, which goes on sale Oct. 6.
