Why Michael Douglas was worried Kathleen Turner ‘hates my guts’ soon after secret affair

LEAVE A COMMENT Things weren't fully smooth sailing between Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner after their on-set affair, it seems.

In his memoir One Helluva Ride, Michael, 82, revealed for the first time that during the making of 1984's Romancing the Stone, he had an affair with his co-star Kathleen, now 72, while still married to his first wife, Diandra Luker.

However, while Michael and Diandra's relationship continued to experience ups and downs, he experienced something similar with Kathleen when they were set to return for Romancing the Stone's sequel the following year after its success at the box office.

"I went back to Diandra. I had a kid, and we ended our film romance," Michael recalled over the weekend during a book talk at the American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theatre, which HELLO! attended.

20th Century Fox commissioned a sequel to the Robert Zemeckis hit, one that had also been written in as a contractual obligation for both Michael and Kathleen. The latter was originally more keen on appearing in The Money Pit instead, which eventually ended up starring Shelley Long opposite Tom Hanks.

However, as the Wall Street star explained, while he was open to returning given he was also a producer on the sequel, The Jewel of the Nile, Kathleen was resistant, especially because she found the script she was offered "terrible."

Fox reportedly threatened to sue the star for $25 million for breach of contract. "It became an issue," Michael shared. "She ended up hiring Roy Cohn to represent her to get out of the time that I wanted to do the picture."

Michael used his power as a producer to get Kathleen to eventually commit to the project, and even credited her with helping him with extensive rewrites to the script. "Ultimately, I won, but I thought, 'Now I've got to go do the sequel with this woman who hates my guts'," Michael quipped.

"God bless Kathleen. She ended up jumping in there and helping us with the script," Michael gushed. The Jewel of the Nile was also a box office success like its predecessor, however, unlike Romancing the Stone, which received an Academy Award nomination and took home two Golden Globes, it polarized critics and killed any chance for a franchise.

Despite the stand-off over the film, Michael and Kathleen remained friends, and even reunited with their Romancing the Stone co-star Danny DeVito to star in his second directorial venture, The War of the Roses, in 1989. They reunited once again three decades later for the show The Kominsky Method.

The actor wrote in his memoir of his feelings toward the star in the '80s: "Kathleen was smart, funny, and sexy with a deep, sultry voice that became her signature. I instantly liked her, and we were immediately attracted to each other."

Soon after the story of Michael and Kathleen's 40-year old affair went public, the Oscar-nominated star issued a statement of her own, which read: "Good heavens what a fuss about something 40 years ago! I love Michael and I look forward to enjoying the book."

More USSee more'Crazy About Her'Michael Douglas confesses to affair with co-star 20 years younger than himThe Wall Street actor dropped his memoir One Helluva Ride, revealing news of affairs, complicated family dynamics, and his present loving marriageHappy Birthday!Bikini-clad Catherine Zeta-Jones kisses Michael Douglas in dreamy ocean photo to celebrate their joint birthdaysCatherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas celebrated their birthdays on September 25 and shared gushing tributes on social mediaUSKim Kardashian, 45, stuns in sheer pink dress as she supports Lewis Hamilton at Singapore Grand PrixThe SKIMS founder brought serious glamour to the paddock as she cheered on her Formula 1 star boyfriendStar studdedEmily Ratajkowski goes braless in sheer lace gown for date night with Romain GavrasThe model joined the French filmmaker at the Natural History Museum for George and Amal Clooney's annual awards ceremony ConversationFor more information on our conversation section, please read our Community Guidelines. Comments featured and views shared are not endorsed by HELLO!.