Michael Douglas on stage and screen

A black and white photograph of Michael Douglas in 1969
Douglas in 1969

American actor and producer Michael Douglas began his film career with a brief uncredited role in Cast a Giant Shadow (1966).[1] In the same year he played a small role in the play Bedford Forrest. His performance in Hail, Hero! (1969) earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Male Newcomer.[2] He won the 1971 Theatre World Award for Pinkville. During 1972–76, he played the lead role in the TV series The Streets of San Francisco. In 1975, Douglas produced One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, Golden Globe for Best Picture and BAFTA Award for Best Film.[3][4]

Douglas' role of Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone's Wall Street (1987) won him the Academy Award for Best Actor.[5] For his portrayal of a fictional American president in the 1995 comedy The American President, he was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.[6] His performance in Wonder Boys (2000) earned him nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama.[7]

He shared the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture with his co-actors in Traffic (2000).[8] He reprised the role of Gekko in Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010) and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for the same.[9] Douglas' portrayal of Liberace in Behind the Candelabra (2013) earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie.[10]

For his contributions to the film industry, Douglas won the 2004 Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award and the 2009 AFI Life Achievement Award.[11][12]

Stage

Production Year(s) Theater Role Notes Ref(s)
Bedford Forrest 1966 Eugene O'Neill Theater Center Soldier [13]
[14]
The Whistling Wizard and the Sultan of Tuffet 1969–1970 Bil Baird Marionette Theater Understudy [15]
Pinkville 1970–1971 The American Place Theatre Jerry the Naz [16]
[17]

Film

Feature film

Title Year Role Notes Ref(s)
Cast a Giant Shadow 1966 Jeep Driver Uncredited [1]
Hail, Hero! 1969 Carl Dixon [18]
Adam at 6 A.M. 1970 Adam Gaines [19]
Summertree 1971 Jerry [16]
Napoleon and Samantha 1972 Danny [20]
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 1975 Producer only [5][21]
Coma 1978 Dr. Mark Bellows [22]
The China Syndrome 1979 Richard Adams Also producer [5][23]
Running Michael Andropolis [24]
It's My Turn 1980 Ben Lewin [25]
The Star Chamber 1983 Judge Steven R. Hardin [26]
Romancing the Stone 1984 Jack Colton Also producer [27][28]
Starman Executive producer only [21]
The Jewel of the Nile 1985 Jack Colton Also producer [28][29]
A Chorus Line Zach [30]
Fatal Attraction 1987 Dan Gallagher [31]
Wall Street Gordon Gekko [32]
Black Rain 1989 Nick Conklin [33]
The War of the Roses Oliver Rose [34]
Flatliners 1990 Producer only [35]
Stone Cold 1991 Producer only; uncredited [36]
Double Impact Producer only [37]
Eyes of an Angel Executive producer only [38]
Shining Through 1992 Ed Leland [39]
Radio Flyer Executive producer only [40]
Basic Instinct Detective Nick Curran [41]
Falling Down 1993 William "D-Fens" Foster [42]
Made in America Producer only [43]
Disclosure 1994 Tom Sanders [44]
The American President 1995 President Andrew Shepherd [45]
The Ghost and the Darkness 1996 Charles Remington Also executive producer [46]
Face/Off 1997 Executive producer only [21]
The Game Nicholas Van Orton [47]
The Rainmaker Producer only [48]
A Perfect Murder 1998 Steven Taylor [49]
Wonder Boys 2000 Professor Grady Tripp [50]
Traffic Robert Wakefield [51]
One Night at McCool's 2001 Mr. Burmeister Also producer [52]
Don't Say a Word Nathan Conrad [53]
It Runs in the Family 2003 Alex Gromberg Also producer [54]
The In-Laws Steve Tobias [55]
The Sentinel 2006 Pete Garrison Also producer [56][57]
You, Me and Dupree Mr. Thompson [58]
King of California 2007 Charlie [59]
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past 2009 Wayne Mead [60]
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt Mark Hunter [61]
Solitary Man Ben Kalmen [62]
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps 2010 Gordon Gekko [32]
Haywire 2011 Alex Coblenz [63]
Last Vegas 2013 Billy Gherson [64]
And So It Goes 2014 Oren Little [65]
Beyond the Reach John Madec Also producer [66]
Ant-Man 2015 Hank Pym / Ant-Man [67]
Unlocked 2017 Eric Lasch [68]
Flatliners Producer only [69]
Animal World 2018 Anderson
We Have Always Lived in the Castle Producer only [70]
Ant-Man and the Wasp Hank Pym / Ant-Man [71]
Avengers: Endgame 2019 [72]
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania 2023 [73]
Blood Knot TBA TBA Filming [74][75]
Key
Denotes films that have not yet been released

Documentary and short film

Title Role Notes Ref(s)
American Revolution: The Impossible War John Laurens Short [76]
American Heritage: The Cause of Liberty [76]
Completely Cuckoo Himself Video documentary [77]
Get Bruce Documentary
One Day in September Narrator [78]
Dinosaurs Alive! [79]
Nuclear Tipping Point [80]
Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon [81]
The Prime Ministers: The Pioneers Yitzhak Rabin Voice; Documentary [82]
Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film Himself Documentary [83]
America's Burning Narrator [84]

Television

A black and white photograph of Tisha Sterling (left) and Michael Douglas (right) from the television program CBS Playhouse
Douglas (right) made his television debut in the play "The Experiment" (1969)
Title Year(s) Role Notes Ref(s)
CBS Playhouse 1969 Young Scientist "The Experiment" (as M. K. Douglas) [85]
The F.B.I. 1971 Jerry Episode: "The Hitchhiker" [86]
Medical Center Jonathan Crowley Episode: "The Albatross" [87]
When Michael Calls 1972 Craig Television film [88]
The Streets of San Francisco 1972–1976 Inspector Steve Keller Directed episode: "Spooks for Sale" (1975) [89]
[90]
Celebrity Challenge of the Sexes 1980 Himself Season 4 [91]
Saturday Night Live 1984 Himself (host) Episode: "Michael Douglas/Deniece Williams" [92]
Starman 1986–1987 Executive producer only [93]
World's Greatest Stunts: A Tribute to Hollywood's Stuntmen 1988 Himself Television film
Documentary
[94]
If Dolphins Could Talk 1990 Narrator Television film
Documentary
[95]
That's What Friends Are For: Arista Records 15th Anniversary Concert Himself [96]
Tribute to John Lennon Host [97]
The Earth Day Special Himself [98]
Oliver Stone: Inside Out 1992 Television film
Documentary
[99]
Rock the Vote 1993 Television film [100]
Burt Lancaster 1997 [101]
To Life! America Celebrates Israel's 50th 1998 Cohost Television special [102]
Where It's At: The Rolling Stone State of the Union Himself Television film
Documentary
[103]
We All Dream of Oz 2000 [104]
Independence Day 2001 2001 Television film [105]
Will & Grace 2002 Detective Gavin Hatch Episode: "Fagel Attraction" [106]
Liberty's Kids Patrick Henry (voice) Episode: "Liberty or Death"
Episode: "United We Stand"
[107]
What's Going On? 2003 Host Episode: "Child Soldiers in Sierra Leone"
Television series
Documentary
[108]
Freedom: A History of US Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin French
Episode: "Revolution" as Benjamin Franklin
Episode: "A War to End Slavery" as Benjamin French
[109]
... A Father... A Son... Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 2005 Himself Television film
Documentary
[110]
Phineas and Ferb 2011 Waylon (voice) Episode: "That's the Spirit/The Curse of Candace" [111]
Behind the Candelabra 2013 Liberace Television film [112]
Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film 2014 Himself Documentary [113]
The Kominsky Method 2018–2021 Sandy Kominsky Main role [114]
Green Eggs and Ham 2019–2022 Guy-Am-I (voice) Main role
Ratched 2020 - Executive producer only [115]
What If...? 2021-2023 Hank Pym / Yellowjacket / Ant-Man (voice) Episode: "What If... the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?"
Episode: "What If... Peter Quill Attacked Earth's Mightiest Heroes?"
[116]
Franklin 2024 Benjamin Franklin Miniseries [117]

Music video

Title Artist Year Note(s) Ref.
"When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" Billy Ocean 1985 [118]
"Things Have Changed" Bob Dylan 2000 [119]

See also

References

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Bibliography