Michael Douglas
“I’m not trying to hide my age”
Michael Douglas stands by his almost 80 years.
© imago/ZUMA Wire
Michael Douglas turns 80 this year. But he has no problem with his age, as he now reveals in an interview.
Hollywood star Michael Douglas (79) celebrates his 80th birthday on September 25th this year. The actor has seen, done and experienced a lot, he could have stopped working long ago – but he hasn’t. In 2023 he starred in the Marvel sci-fi film “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania”, this year he took on the lead role of Benjamin Franklin in the Apple TV+ miniseries “Franklin”. “I think the inner child always remains,” says Douglas in an interview with the “Bild” newspaper. Only his “outer covering” had changed “dramatically”, but that was just “the reality”.
Douglas is completely open about his age, especially with family and friends. “I don’t try to hide my age,” he says. Getting older doesn’t have any positive aspects for him, but “you don’t have to prove anything to yourself anymore,” says the actor. “You feel comfortable in your own skin and just accept who you are.”
In 2010 he was diagnosed with cancer
When it comes to his health, he obviously takes doctors’ advice seriously, especially when they tell him “that you have cancer.” Because “everything else suddenly becomes less important in comparison.” Douglas speaks from experience, because in 2010 the actor was diagnosed with tongue cancer. The tumor was removed and after radiation and chemotherapy Douglas was cured in 2011.
How Michael Douglas keeps fit
To stay healthy and fit in old age, Douglas eats a healthy diet: “I don’t eat gluten anymore. It’s good for my memory. I also hardly eat beef anymore, mainly for environmental reasons.” He also does sports four times a week: “Half an hour of endurance training and half an hour of stretching exercises. Then another hour of abdominal exercises and lifting weights.”
He will certainly also receive support from his long-time wife Catherine Zeta-Jones (54), with whom he has been married since 2000 and who has a daughter, Carys (21).