Catherine Zeta-Jones says the secret to her 26-year marriage to Michael Douglas is time apart.The Welsh actress, 56, and Hollywood star, 81, fell in love nearly three decades ago when Michael infamously told her during their first conversation: ‘I’m going to be the father of your children’.The couple share two children Dylan, 26, and Carys, 23, but their marriage hasn’t been without issue. They separated briefly in 2013 during a tumultuous period which saw Michael diagnosed with throat cancer and Catherine diagnosed with bipolar II disorder.But they soon reunited and Catherine has now reflected on how their relationship has endured where many other Hollywood partnerships have failed. The secret of their marriage is ‘working’, she says. ‘Michael is, like, “Do that job, that’s amazing.” Then he’s able to fly in and see me.”Much better than waking up, going, “What do you want for breakfast, honey?” I don’t think our marriage would ever have lasted if it was like that,’ she told The Sunday Times Culture. Catherine Zeta-Jones says the secret to her 26-year marriage to Michael Douglas is time apart. The Welsh actress, 56, and Hollywood star, 81, fell in love nearly three decades agoMichael stepped back from acting in 2022 after a nearly 60-year career and has said he will only return to the screen for something ‘special’.Catherine though has consistently worked throughout their marriage and in recent years has had huge success with her role as Morticia in the Netflix hit Wednesday. Next up, she is using her natural Welsh accent for the first time in decades to play the former cocaine queenpin lead in Prime Video series Kill Jackie. When she’s not on set, she and Michael call New York home after a decade based in Bermuda when their kids were at school.Dylan and Carys are now both persuing acting careers after graduating college. ‘They’re plugging away,’ she has said of their careers. ‘You have to go with your passion.’ Hitting out at the inevitable nepo baby label, she added: ‘But it’s hard for them to forge a way forward on their own. This horrific phrase nepo baby is horrible because these kids didn’t ask to be born into this, they’re finding their own way in life.”But they love it, and they’re good. Otherwise Michael and I would be the first to go, “You know what? Maybe law school looks really good.”Carys, who graduated from Brown University last year, made her NYC theater debut by taking on a role in Anton Chekhov’s play The Seagull in July. The couple share two children Dylan, 26, and Carys, 23, but their marriage hasn’t been without issue (pictured together in 2025) The production ran from June 20-27 at St. Lydia’s in Brooklyn and a viral video on Instagram captured moments from Carys’s performance during one of the nights. The clip came to an end as the cast took a bow for the applauding crowd and she was later seen signing autographs for some attendees.A friend of Carys told the Daily Mail in May that her famous parents are ‘so proud’ of their daughter’s achievement. During a conversation with People, she opened up about her desire to follow her passion for acting and performing arts post-college. ‘I grew up doing theater, and I didn’t study acting in school, but that’s why I’m happy to be in such an informative arts space, so hopefully more of that,’ Carys told the outlet. And while talking to Town & Country back in 2018, she got candid about growing up with parents in the spotlight. ‘My parents do a really good job of reality-checking me and being like, “Look around you. The life you have is extraordinary.”‘