Michael Douglas reveals Catherine Zeta-Jones’ ultimatum about affairs before accepting actor's proposal

NewsentertainmentenglishhollywoodMichael Douglas reveals Catherine Zeta-Jones’ ultimatum before marriage: 'Either continue affairs, or end it and be with me' Michael Douglas reveals Catherine Zeta-Jones’ ultimatum before marriage: 'Either continue affairs, or end it and be with me' TOI Entertainment Desk / etimes.in / Oct 31, 2026, 09:05 IST Michael Douglas reveals that Catherine Zeta-Jones gave him an ultimatum when he courted her, telling him that he needed to clean up his act in case he wanted this relationship to actually go anywhere.

(Instagram) Hollywood icons Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas have been through a lot in their lives and relationship since they started dating in 1999. Recently, while talking about his bond with the beloved ‘Wednesday’ actress, the actor revealed that following his divorce from Diandra Luker, he had quite a lot of affairs.

However, it was Jones' ultimatum to 'clean up his act' that turned things around.About Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas' relationship The two actors had first met in 1998 and, a year later, had started dating.

While featuring on ‘The Graham Norton Show' on Friday, October 30, to promote his memoir, ‘One Helluva Ride,' Douglas touched upon the final warning that Zeta left him with that made him want to get better for her.He shared that while they were dating, she had given him the final “ultimatum” and told him to “clean up his act” if he wanted a future for the two of them.At the time, Douglas admitted that he was involved with around five women before he courted the actress.

He added, "When I courted Catherine, she told me, 'If we are doing this, you need to clean your act up.' I was divorced and seeing some other people at the time, so I had to call five women to break things off.” In his book as well, the veteran touched upon this topic and wrote that Jones told him bluntly, "'If you’re dating other people.

You can either continue with them or end it and be with me.’”He also wrote, “Just after my marriage, I had been seeing five other women. They knew I was recently separated and in the process of getting a divorce. I made sure they all lived in different cities, which felt like a respectful way to be nonmonogamous.

None of them asked for commitment.”Michael Douglas on how he realised that Catherine Zeta-Jones was the one for him The actor also commented on how he found out that Jones was ‘the one’ for him through everything. After ending his whirlwind romance with five different women, the two got into a committed relationship.

Douglas then recalled, “I had never fallen in love on a movie screen before. Until I saw Catherine. She was magic, in a way that went beyond beauty. And I was certain, as much as I had ever been about anything, that she was the one.” He continued, "It's the kind of moment that only comes around once in your life, if you're lucky.

The one time that you know, without any doubt in your mind, that you're meant to be with someone.”Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones met in August 1998 at the Deauville Film Festival in France and started dating in 1999.

They got married in 2000 and also welcomed their first child, Dylan Michael Douglas, that same year. While they’ve had their fair share of issues, including a public split in 2013 that lasted over six months, the two have managed to become one of the most iconic Hollywood celebrity couples.

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