Michael Douglas’ girl: I was bullied over my dad’s age
WITH two of Hollywood’s most famous faces as parents, you’d think Carys Zeta Douglas would be the envy of her school friends.
But the 15-year-old daughter of Michael Douglas, 73, and Catherine Zeta- Jones, 48, has revealed how she was taunted by bullies over her father’s age.
In an interview with Town and Country Magazine she said: ‘People would be like, “Your grandpa’s here to pick you up.”’
Despite being third-generation showbiz royalty, she said she did not like having the name Douglas attached to her as she constantly felt she needed to prove herself.
She added: ‘When I was younger, I didn’t like the idea of having this name attached to me, this kind of “Douglas dynasty” stuff.
‘I think what bothers me the most is that people think I don’t work hard for it, that I don’t need to work hard for it … honestly I feel like it’s the opposite. I feel I need to constantly prove myself to people – that I am not just my parents’ daughter.’
The teenager also revealed she used to get ‘upset’ by the paparazzi as a child but has since accepted they are unlikely ever to go away.
She said: ‘They would jump on the subway and sit right in front of me. I was like six. I was confused.
‘That’s when I knew – “If this is going to be what it’s like, I need to focus on who I really am. This is going to be something that’s just going to happen, and I can’t do anything about it.”’
Carys said she relied on her Welsh actress mother not just for moral support but also for fashion tips.
She added: ‘My mum is like a fashion icon to me … I’m always looking through her closet.’
Miss Zeta- Jones also gushed about her daughter’s sense of style. ‘She’s modern but ageappropriate,’ she said. ‘I’ve never had to turn to Carys and say, “I think that’s a little inappropriate.”’
Carys grew up in Bermuda, an island paradise far removed from the madness of Hollywood.
In the interview she credited her parents with keeping both her and her brother Dylan, 18, grounded.
She said: ‘My parents do a really good job of reality- checking me and being like, “Look around you. The life you have is extraordinary.”’