Catherine Zeta-Jones gave her current husband, Michael Douglas, a harsh ultimatum early in their relationship: stop dating other women.
“When I was courting Catherine, she said to me, ‘If we’re going to do this, you need to get your act together,'” Douglas recalled on Friday’s episode of “The Graham Norton Show,” according to Hello! review.
Douglas, 82, noted that he had recently divorced his first wife, Diandra Luker, and was “seeing other people around the time” he met Zeta-Jones, 57, in 1998.
But following the “Wednesday” star’s request, Douglas said he “had to call five women to break things off.”
Douglas also admitted on the British talk show that he “was a little surprised” by the number of romantic partners he had before pursuing Zeta-Jones.
“It was very easy to feel comfortable with your co-stars and sometimes it got carried away,” he explained.
In his new memoir, “One Helluva Ride,” Douglas explains that after separating from Luker in 1995 after 23 years of marriage, he began non-monogamous relationships with five women who all lived in different cities.
But after meeting Zeta-Jones at the Deauville American Film Festival in France, Douglas recalled that the “Chicago” actress refused to date him if they weren’t monogamous.
“That day, I called everyone to tell them that I had met someone and that I could no longer continue seeing them,” he wrote in his book. “They all took it well.”
Two years after meeting, Douglas and Zeta-Jones were married at the Plaza Hotel in New York.
The couple welcomed two children, son Dylan, 26, and daughter Carys, 23, both actors. Douglas also has a son Cameron, 47, from his first marriage.
Douglas and Zeta-Jones briefly split in 2013 after her battle with tongue cancer and treatment for bipolar disorder, but as he noted in his book, the “Fatal Attraction” star “never gave up hope” of reconciling.
“I love Catherine as I have never loved any other woman,” he wrote. “She’s my wife, my best friend and my life partner. I could never lose her.”
In an exclusive interview with Page Six earlier this month, Douglas confirmed that Zeta-Jones is currently reading her explosive memoir.
However, Zeta-Jones admitted on “Today” on Oct. 8 that she was too busy to finish Douglas’ book.
“As much as I love my husband, when I’m tired at night, I have no intention of reading about him at all,” she said.
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