64-year-old Michael Douglas' father, Kirk Douglas, had also been granted the lifetime achievement award in 1991.
Michael Douglas said that he was delighted to be able to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Howard Stringer, who is the chairman of the American Film Institute, said that in his opinion, Michael Douglas was the "rightful heir to the throne of the royal family of American film".
Douglas is starring in Peter Hyams' thriller Beyond a Reasonable Doubt and also in Mark Waters' comedy Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.
Douglas is married to actress Catherine Zeta Jones, who is also a very successful film star.
