The Strange Way Catherine Zeta Jones & Michael Douglas' Unlikely Age-Gap Relationship Kicked Off

Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones have been married now for several decades, and have one of Hollywood's most celebrated superstar romances, as well as one of the biggest age gaps among all celebrity couples. Douglas comes from show business royalty as the son of screen legends Kirk Douglas and Diana Dill.The movie star had already taken home two Oscars when he crossed paths with a young Zeta-Jones in 1998," but their meeting was far from a chance encounter.

As Douglas recalled in a recording he shared to Instagram in November 2020, in celebration of their 20th wedding anniversary, he became infatuated with Zeta-Jones when he saw an advance screening of "The Mask of Zorro." The following month, he found out she was going to be at the same film festival he was attending in France, so he had his assistant reach out to ask if she wanted to grab drinks with him. At a late-night rendezvous at the bar, Douglas decided to lay on the charm with a bold pickup line.

"I probably made a big mistake, but I looked at her and said, 'I'm gonna be the father of your children.' And she looked at me and she said, 'I've heard a lot about you. I guess it's all true. Goodnight.' And she left," Douglas recalled, adding that she then left the festival the next morning to go back to set, where she was shooting "Entrapment" at the time. Despite thinking he'd ruined his chances, something struck a chord with Zeta-Jones, and the pair later reconnected. Douglas also seemingly glanced into the future as they also welcomed two children – son Dylan, born in August 2000, and daughter Carys, born in April 2003.

Michael Douglas is a handsome movie star with a natural charm and confidence that has gotten him far in life. This is likely why his bold and somewhat jarring declaration of wanting to have children with Catherine Zeta-Jones during their first real conversation over drinks somehow managed to pan out. However, The List spoke exclusively with international wellness and relationship coach Teresha Young, and she shared her insight into just how unlikely it was that Douglas' romantic gambit actually worked. "In reality, those straightforward pick-up lines are much more Hollywood than everyday romance," Young shared. "If such candidness works, it's more the exception, than the rule."

According to Young, an assertive line like the one Douglas employed could actually be a red flag for a lot of women, especially that early on into getting to know one another. "In everyday dating, successful connections usually come from pacing, reading the room, and letting attraction grow from genuine rapport," Young explained. And while "blunt honesty can feel refreshing" in certain circumstances, it can also lead to uncomfortable and awkward situations.

Young suggests that, before professing any grand proclamations of any kind to a person you're romantically interested in, it's best to pace yourself, and do a little bit of self-reflective introspection. "Honesty has its power, but it needs the bigger picture of timing, true connection, and self-awareness to really land," Young shared. At least for Douglas and Zeta-Jones, the true connection was there, even if they didn't realize it at the time, and they've clearly discovered the key to a lasting marriage.