Cameron Douglas Recalls How Late Grandad Kirk Would ‘Light Up’ When He Saw Great-Granddaughter Lua

Family is forever. Cameron Douglas recently opened up about his bond with late grandfather Kirk Douglas, who died at age 103 on February 5. Out of all the special memories he has with the legendary Hollywood star, the It Runs in the Family actor revealed the one he’ll hold closest to his heart is the fact that the Spartacus star was able to meet his 2-year-old great-granddaughter, Lua.

“My daughter is a little over 2 years old now and they spent a lot of time together over the past year and a half,” the 41-year-old shared with The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, February 12. “He would light up every time she was around. When she was in the same room, all she wanted to do was either be in his lap or be the focus of his attention.”

He continued, “I’ll remind her of that when she gets older, showing her that connection through photos. It’s pretty special.”

Cameron, who is the son of Kirk’s eldest child, Michael Douglas, also admitted that even though the Paths of Glory actor was up there in age, there was nothing that could have prepared him for the day he said goodbye to his beloved grandad. “Losing him is one of those things that, even when you sort of see it coming — he was 103 — it’s still difficult,” he confessed. “I take solace in the pride of being his grandson and having had the opportunity to spend as much time with him as I have.”

The National Lampoon’s Adam & Eve actor, who previously struggled with drug addiction, even praised Kirk for being an extremely positive influence on his life. “He was always there, always supportive and he believed in me even when maybe I had given up on myself,” he gushed. “He made sure I knew that.”

After a rough few years, Cameron — who is working on his sobriety and being a father to Lua Lizzy after being released from prison three years ago — told THR he moved to Los Angeles to be closer to Kirk and his longtime wife, Anne Buydens.

“I moved about 15 minutes away from and have been spending a lot of time with him, bringing my daughter [and partner] Vivian [Thibes] over on weekends,” he shared. “Just watching the bond between my daughter and grandfather was extremely special.”

He emotionally added, “That says a lot about the man that he was in my life and my desire to get my career going again soon enough so that he would be able to see the trajectory of my life starting to go in a positive direction. It’s what he called ‘functioning.'”

The Mr. Nice Guy actor even revealed how proud Kirk was of his acting career. “He always used to tell me — even before I got [a part in the indie film The Runner] when I was doing a lot of auditioning — how he thought that I was truly talented to keep going,” he recalled. “To hear that coming from him was enough.”

He continued, “I’ll remind her of that when she gets older, showing her that connection through photos. It’s pretty special.”

Cameron’s heartwarming words for his late grandfather come a week after Michael, 75, shared the news that his beloved father sadly passed. The Basic Instinct actor announced the terrible news in a candid Instagram post on February 5.