Michael Douglas denies masturbating in front of former female employee

Michael Douglas has denied masturbating in front of a former female employee as he believes the woman is planning to publically accuse him of performing the sex act.

Speaking to Deadline, the Oscar-winning actor said it was necessary for him to talk about it first as he wants to protect his three children before a story of the unnamed woman appears on The Hollywood Reporter, accusing him of indulging in the sex act some 32 years ago. He added that the woman's accusations of him masturbating in front of her and also stopping her from getting another job in Hollywood are "complete lies".

The 73-year-old said he had to "get ahead" of the story because the woman's story will label him a "sexual harasser".

"Masturbating in front of her?" he told the publication. "I don't know where to begin. This is a complete lie, fabrication, no truth to it whatsoever."

"The reporter told me, 'She did say that you never harassed her, never touched her,' and I said ... OK. So I didn't know where this comes from. The reporter said, 'Let me digest this, and we'll sit on it over the holidays and get back into it after'." he added.

Douglas said when the reporter contacted him he was told that they would be running the story as the woman is trying to "give this story to other people".

"As I say, I will fess up to colorful language, but the issue of masturbating in front of her? That rung is something I've only heard about the last year. It's not an expression that related to the '80s. So I thought it stunk. And I tried to figure out, why the hell would somebody do this?" he said.

Douglas said it was hard for him to talk about the claims with his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones and his children.

"The part that hurt the worst is having to share something like this to your wife and your children," he said. "My kids are really upset, has to go to school worrying this is going to be in some article about me, being a sexual harasser. They're scared and very uncomfortable."