It’s been thirteen years since Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones walked down the aisle in a lavish ceremony at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan. During that time, they’ve had two children, cranked out a lot of hit movies and undergone some traumatizing battles with physical and mental illness. Sadly, it seems those battles have recently done a number on their marriage, and the two Hollywood stars have reportedly decided to take a break from each other.
According to People, she’s currently at the couple’s formerly shared home in New York, and he’s currently on their yacht in Sardinia. Since May, they’ve alternated vacations and missed each other’s red carpet premieres. They also apparently haven’t been photographed together at all in that timeframe, which is perhaps the worst sign of all.
Neither Michael nor Catherine has spoken out about what’s really going on. Their publicists have stayed mum too. As such, there’s no way to confirm these two have actually wandered in different directions, but given the emotionally charged last few years these two have had, it’s not completely unthinkable. Back in 2010, he was diagnosed with cancer, and more recently, she has battled bipolar disorder.
Fortunately, whether they’re together or not, both Catherine and Michael seem to be on the mend. Simply reaching out and getting help for a mental illness is a gigantic step toward getting it under control, and Michael is back to acting. If they’re going to take some time apart, it’s very important both parties sort out their individual lives as best as possible, and they certainly seem to be doing that. Plus, there’s no reason why marriage breaks always have to end in divorce. In fact, sometimes they don’t. We might collectively think of them as kisses of death, but a minority of couples actually do use that time apart to figure out they can’t live without one another.
At sixty-eight and forty-three, their marriage has attracted a ton of headlines over the past decade plus for featuring a twenty-five year age gap. It’s understandable why people would be so obsessed with talking about that, but often lost in the shuffle is just how well this marriage has worked during the better times. The pair have two lovely children named Dylan and Carys, and they’ve been towers of support for one another at various points.
Pop Blend’s sincerest thoughts go out to the couple’s children during this sad and lonely time. Here’s to hoping mom and dad can work out all of their issues or barring that, at least figure out a way to be as friendly and amiable about any future split as possible. The kids certainly deserve as much.
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