Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones are one of Hollywood's best-loved couples. But, before they could tie the knot in 2000, the Ant-Man actor had to finalise his divorce with his first wife, Diandra Luker, resulting in one of the largest divorce settlements in Hollywood history.
A film producer and the daughter of a Swiss-American diplomat, Diandra met Michael when she was a 19-year-old student at Georgetown's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. The actor, then 32, was smitten instantly. After two weeks of dating, Michael had proposed, and six weeks later, the couple had tied the knot and started a new life together in LA. On 13 December 1978, Diandra and Michael's son, Cameron Douglas, was born.
© GettyWhile the former spouses were married for 22 years in total, it was in 1995 that Diandra officially filed for divorce.
Reflecting on their split in 2013, Michael told The Mirror: "I know I'm going to get into trouble here. I have nothing against her and in fact I'm very fond of my first wife. But we should have ended that marriage eight or 10 years earlier.
© Getty"It took me too long to realise that if you go to a marriage counsellor to resolve problems, it's in his interest to keep the marriage going. Because if I end the marriage he's got no business. I think Diandra would probably say the same thing. That's the only clear regret that I have."
According to several reports, Diandra received a divorce settlement of over $45 million, and she also received their Santa Barbara, California, estate. By 2011, an additional lawsuit was brought to attention, as Diandra and Michael battled over whether she would be entitled to part of his earnings from Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.
© GettyAs Diandra and Michael had been married during the production and release of the original film, Diandra claimed that she would be entitled to earnings from the subsequent sequel. Ultimately, this second lawsuit was dismissed in court.
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From their divorce, the exes had retained shares of their luxurious home in Mallorca, however, which boasts ten bedrooms, 11,000 square feet of space and direct access to the sea, but Michael eventually decided to buy out her share of the property.
© GettyThe actor and his ex-wife tried to sell the home and put it on the market in 2014 but failed to receive a viable offer. Speaking to Majorcan newspaper Ultima Hora in 2021, Michael later admitted: "It was very uncomfortable sharing the property with my ex-wife Diandra.
"Six months for each of us wasn't very pleasant for anyone. Catherine is very happy here, especially now that we don't share with Diandra. She feels much more comfortable," he added.
© GettyFollowing her divorce from Michael, Diandra has spoken fondly of Michael, as well as his marriage to Catherine Zeta-Jones. During a 2011 interview with Harper's Bazaar, the film producer explained: "I loved Michael very much when I married him. And I don't think love ever really disappears. It might metamorphose, [but] I certainly don't think that hate is the right recipe. "I'm really happy that he is madly in love and has two lovely children."
