Michael Douglas Was 'Uncomfortable' Detailing Dad Kirk Douglas' Physical Abuse While He Was Alive: 'He Was of a Generation That Hit'

Michael Douglas made shocking claims about his father Kirk Douglas' abuse.

The actor, 82, opened up about Kirk and his mother Diana's means of discipline while promoting his tell-all memoir, One Helluva Ride, which came out on October 6.

"He was of a generation that hit. My mother used the hairbrush," he revealed in an interview. "He was tough. That was also one of the reasons why it took a little time to warm up as we got older, and to forgive him."

Michael had a "big temper" while he was growing up alongside his brothers Joel, Eric and Peter, adding that he had turned out to be a lot like Kirk.

"I think I inherited my father’s tenacity, my father’s ambition and his rage," he said. "He had a big temper growing up. There must have been this desire to feel like I was somebody."

Michael noted that it would have been impossible to release a full and truthful memoir about growing up with his famous father while Kirk was still alive.

The Spartacus star passed away in 2020 when he was 103 years old.

"I was very uncomfortable talking about the early years and his physical abuse," he revealed, referring to tales of his contentious relationship with Kirk included in the new book.

In another interview, Michael explained that it felt important to divulge the truth about his upbringing, regardless of how uncomfortable it may have made him or his audience.

"I had to be honest about the abuse or just the fear factor that entered into going out to visit him, and understanding as you got older and then saw your own actions were very similar to your father's," he shared.

Michael and Kirk were eventually able to mend their relationship and forgive one another, but even as an adult, he experienced tense moments that stuck with him.

"Time heals, you know," he mused. "Hopefully. Life moves on. Dad had that great line right after I won the Oscar for Wall Street."

"He said to me, 'You know, I would have been nicer to you if I knew how successful you were going to be,'" he recalled.

After his win, many people asked Kirk if he was "jealous" of his Academy Award-winning son, having never won an Oscar of his own.

"And he said, ‘Jealous?'" Michael recalled as his dad gushed over his family legacy. "'This is a sense of immortality, a continuity of generations.'”