‘Franklin’ star Michael Douglas follows Founding Father’s success later in life: ‘A great time for me’

Michael Douglas is finding some common ground with a Founding Father.

In a March interview with CBS News, Douglas compared what his interviewer referred to as his "third act" in life, to that of Benjamin Franklin, who became a Founding Father at 70 years old, leaving behind an incredible legacy.

"This has been a great time for me, but I've been very fortunate," Douglas told the outlet. "Catherine and I have been together, it'll be 25 years come this year."

Douglas was 56 years old when he married Catherine Zeta-Jones, with whom he shares two kids. When asked if he wanted to have children so late in life, Douglas exclaimed, "With Catherine Zeta-Jones? Yeah!," joking no one had to "twist his arm."

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At 79 years old, Douglas was fascinated to learn what an impact Franklin had on American politics when he was in his 70s. He explained his role in the show gave him a "new appreciation for our Constitution and democracy," saying without Franklin landing support from France, "it would have been the shortest career of democracy that existed." 

"He was a little bit of a philanderer; he liked to imbibe. He was a big flirt. His idea of negotiating was a little bit of a seduction.... I felt Elon Musk comparisons," he said at the Television Critics Association's news conference in February. "A guy who is slightly out there, but also you were aware he was so bright and so knowledgeable on so many things. He was charming. He was taking prisoners."

Douglas' deep dive into the Founding Father comes on the heels of his new Apple TV + miniseries, "Franklin," in which he plays the historical figure. The series tells the story of Franklin's time lobbying in France in order to gain their support during the American Revolution. 

Aside from learning about an important figure in history, Douglas took the role to try something new, as he had never acted in a period piece before.

"I’m sort of at the point in my career where I’m trying different things," Douglas said at the press conference. "I never did a green screen film before the Marvel stuff and comedy was fascinating, so I wanted to do [‘The Kominsky Method’]. And in close to a 60-year career, I’d never done period, so I wanted to see how I looked in tights. Thank God I didn’t have to wear a wig."

While he was excited about getting into character with a new wardrobe, he opted out of getting prosthetics to look more like Franklin, saying he "hate[s]" that stuff.

"In terms of physical, we did, I did look at that picture [on a $100 bill] and we did say, 'Well, let's give it a try… and the whole, the whole work.' But, it kind of – the producing half of my career took over, and I started figuring out, 'Well, let's see, the hotel is 45 minutes to the studio. It's gonna be two, two and a half hours of makeup in the back,'" Douglas told "Entertainment Tonight" in April. "I hate those situations."

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Douglas explained he did make an effort when it came to getting Franklin's hair right, telling "Entertainment Tonight" he wore "like a half wig," after growing his "own hair out," in order to "accentuate" the look.

"But it was sort of fun at the end of the day, yeah, I was flowing... I was a hippie in another time generation, so [it] kind of brought me back to my roots," he said.

Aside from being able to experiment with new clothing and learn about an important historical figure, Douglas was happy to work with the "wonderful cast" starring in the series with him.

The show also stars Noah Jupe, from "Honey Boy," Marc Duret, Eddie Marsan and Daniel Mays.

"We had a great cast [and a] wonderful director in Tim Van Patten," Douglas said during the Television Critics Association's news conference. "I think it helped us in the sense that it was a real ensemble group. I think we all wanted to stay away from these sorts of historical pictures that are giving you a history lesson but don't really get into the intrigue, the gamesmanship, and the gamble that we had sort of talked about early on."