Catherine Zeta-Jones Pursues Career Comeback While Michael Douglas Fears Being Left Behind

Screen icon Michael Douglas is stuck puttering around the house while his decades-younger wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones, jet-sets around the globe, a source tells GLOBE.

While the 25-year age difference between Michael, 80, and Catherine, 55, wasn’t “that big of a deal” when they wed in 2000, it’s become “much more of a factor today,” an insider says. “Catherine is living her best life without Michael, even though he’s come to depend on her greatly and loves to have her by his side. Now people close to them are concerned the marriage may be on the rocks.”

Locals say they rarely visit their $10.75 million estate in Bermuda at the same time. “They’re living separate lives,” one says.

“Michael is in semi-retirement now,” shares a source. He filmed his last acting credit three years ago in an Apple TV+ miniseries on the life of Benjamin Franklin.

“But Catherine is still eager to work,” says the source, who adds that the Zorro star has come up with a renewed career game plan that will only increase her time away from the Oscar winner. “Given their age difference, she is still likely to have a long life after Michael is gone, and if she gave up acting now, it would be harder to ever start it back up again.”

First up is her new Amazon Prime series, Kill Jackie, which has been shooting in Spain, Portugal, England and her native Wales since late March, and a source says it’s left her spouse feeling like a shut-in.

“He tried to talk her out of taking on Kill Jackie since it would keep them apart for months, but Catherine said she has to think of herself as well,” the source says. “It’s led to a distance between them they may not be able to overcome.”

The couple has been putting several of their homes on the market, including their Bermuda estate, a retreat in Majorca, Spain, and a home in suburban New York City now that kids Dylan, 24, and Carys, 22, have flown the nest — and sources say it looks more like a sign of divorce than downsizing.

Despite the stars spending significant time apart, Michael’s rep says they attended Carys’ college graduation together and “they will head off together for their usual summer plans” after Kill Jackie wraps up.

But the source insists, “Without the kids around, there is a lot less to keep Catherine around the house.”