"Are you kidding?": Michael Douglas reacts after discovering he is 'DNA cousin' of Scarlett Johansson on Finding Your Roots

Michael Douglas discovered that he is a 'DNA cousin' of Scarlett Johansson on the April 2 episode of the PBS show, Finding Your Roots season 10. Upon learning about the same, a visibly surprised Douglas exclaimed:

"Are you kidding? Oh, that's amazing. All right. This is cool. This is so cool."

Michael Douglas is no stranger to having celebrity blood relatives. He is the son of actors Kirk Douglas and Diana Douglas. He has also been married to Oscar winner, Catherine Zeta-Jones. His brother, Joel, is a well-known director, and his half-brother, Eric, is a standup comedian.

The 79-year-old American actor and film producer has won multiple accolades, including five Golden Globes, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, two Academy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the AFI Life Achievement Award.

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How Michael Douglas discovered that he's the 'DNA cousin' of Scarlett Johansson

Finding Your Roots host Henry Louis Gates Jr. consulted his 'Book of Life' in the show and remarked that Michael Douglas and the Black Widow actress share identical DNA branches on four different chromosomes.

The 'Book of Life' contains research material from leading professional genealogists to identify the genetic composition of the show's guests and compare them with the DNA of other celebrities.

"Asteroid City" New York Premiere (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)

Gates also explained that the two actors' shared DNA branches appear along Scarlett's "maternal lines," which reportedly go back to Eastern Europe's Jewish communities. Michael Douglas' paternal grandparents were seemingly originally Russian Jews who emigrated to America.

Following the revelation, Douglas commented:

"That's incredible. I look forward to seeing Scarlett next time!"

After the excitement subsided, Michael Douglas discussed the difficulties children with star parents face in the industry. Despite his stellar career, the Oscar winner revealed that he'd warned his kids to avoid a career in Hollywood because of the hardships faced by newcomers with celebrity parents.

The same episode also revealed an unexpected relative of American writer and director, Lena Dunham. At the end of the episode, Gates revealed that Dunham is a distant relative of Larry David, the co-creator of Seinfeld.

“My husband’s gonna freak out! It’s Larry David, the other LD! This is the hottest information I could have ever gotten.”

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Have Michael Douglas and Scarlett Johansson ever shared the big screen?

Michael Douglas and Scarlett Johansson haven't shared the big screen in any movie so far. However, both were in the final installment of the MCU's Thanos saga, Avengers: Endgame. Douglas portrayed Hank Pym, while Scarlett Johansson played Natasha Romanoff, aka, the Black Widow.

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Hank Pym was a physicist and an entomologist who discovered the 'Pym Particles' and crafted the Ant-Man suit. After resigning from S.H.I.E.L.D., Pym recruited Scott Lang to wear the Ant-Man suit and defeat the nefarious Darren Cross, aka Yellowjacket.

Meanwhile, Scarlett Johansson played Natasha Romanoff in the Marvel Saga. Trained in the Red Room, she was a Russian spy who became one of the Avengers' founding members. After being with the Avengers since their inception, she sacrificed herself to obtain the Soul Stone in Avengers: Endgame.

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Finding Your Roots: Unveiling genealogical surprises since 2012

The television show, ,Finding Your Roots has been revealing hidden genealogical surprises since its inception in 2012.

In an interview, host Henry Louis Gates Jr. revealed that his curiosity to discover his own genetic lineage sparked his interest in family trees. This interest finally influenced him to launch the series. The host remarked:

"I went into orbit when I found out that DNA could be used to trace your ancestry back 500 years. When you spit in that test tube, you never know what’s going to pop out."

Henry Louis Gates Jr. at the 2019 Summer TCA Press Tour - Day 7 (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

Some of the iconic connections unveiled in the last twelve years include Edward Norton realizing that he and Julia Roberts are genetic cousins, Bob Odenkirk discovering his ties to King Charles and Nathan Lane, and Viola Davis learning about her connection to Anita Hill.