Michael Douglas has claimed he and Kathleen Turner had a secret relationship while filming Romancing the Stone in Mexico in 1984, contradicting more than four decades of public denials about their relationship.
The revelation appears in Douglas’s forthcoming memoir, One Helluva Ride, in which he says he and his then-wife, Diandra Luker, were effectively separated when production began on the action adventure film.
Douglas writes that he and Turner grew close during filming and “fell hard for each other and began a relationship”. He claims the pair kept the affair hidden from the rest of the cast and crew, meeting for dinner after work before having sex in Turner’s hotel room.
He says Danny DeVito and director Robert Zemeckis were unaware of what was happening. However, Douglas claims Luker sensed something was wrong when she travelled to the set with their son, Cameron.
According to Douglas’s account, Luker told Turner that she and Douglas were still together. He says Turner then withdrew because she did not want to complicate the situation.
Douglas says he agreed to remain married to Luker for Cameron’s sake. The couple stayed married until 2000.
Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner worked together three times
Romancing the Stone was the first of three films in which Douglas and Turner appeared together. They later reunited for The Jewel of the Nile and The War of the Roses, while maintaining that they had never been romantically involved.
Turner said several years ago that the relationship between them had involved sexual tension but no sex. Douglas’s memoir presents a different version of events.
Despite the revelation, Douglas says he has maintained a strong relationship with Turner and asked her permission before including the account in his book. One Helluva Ride is due to be published on October 6.
