Douglas says he never dissed Brangelina

After taking a three-year break to spend time with Catherine and the kids, a scruffy Michael Douglas is thrilled to be back at work on “The Sentinel.”

“I love the beard,” Shaun Robinson said. “What's it for? A new role?”

“A new picture, yeah,” Michael said. “Starting a new picture at the end of the month, ‘King of California.’”

“How does Catherine like kissing you with that beard?” Shaun asked.

“She kind of likes it,” Michael said. “She says something new, you know. We're going into our sixth year now.”

“[Like] a new man in the house?” Shaun asked.

“Yes, exactly,” Michael laughed.

Despite his relaxed attitude, Michael was startled to find out about an alleged rift between himself and pal Brad Pitt.

In the April issue of GQ magazine, Michael was quoted as saying, “I don't know about Brad Pitt, leaving that beautiful wife to go hold orphans for Angelina. I mean, how long is that going to last?”

“This quote was completely inaccurate,” Michael said. “When we asked the reporter, and it was a long, lengthy article, maybe fifteen hours of tape recording and I asked to hear it on tape and she said, well, I turned the tape recorder off. And so, you know, I don't know what to say.”

“You must be upset about that?” Shaun said.

“I'm very upset,” Michael said. “I consider him a good friend. He did a picture with Catherine, 'Ocean's 12,' and she does wonderful work for the United Nations, which is very, very close to me.”

GQ'S reply?

“We're fans of Michael Douglas, but GQ stands behind our reporting,” the magazine said in a statement sent to Access Hollywood.

“In other movie news, I guess you are pretty happy that you turned down ‘Basic Instinct 2’?” Shaun asked.

“I don't wish ill will on anybody,” Michael said.

The “Basic Instinct” sequel bombed at the box office, making just over $5 million in its first 10 days of release.

“We did an awfully good job a number of years ago with ‘Basic Instinct,’” Michael said. “Sharon was wonderful, and that's why I didn't get involved. It's a very hard thing to recreate.”

“You must have been shocked that it opened tenth?” Shaun said.

“I was really surprised,” Michael said.

“You were quoted as saying, ‘I was not about to show my ass again at an age when it is not respectable,’” Shaun said.

“That is a very accurate quote,” Michael laughed.

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