Appearing on Monday's "Today" show, actor Michael Douglas said he thinks his son's five-year sentence for dealing drugs could help him kick the drug habit.

"He was going to be dead or somebody was going to kill him," Douglas said. "My son was a drug dealer, and he tried to kill himself for a while, and I can't condone his behavior."

31-year-old Cameron Douglas, Michael's son with previous wife Diandra, has had drug problems since he was 13. Douglas told Matt Lauer there were a number of reasons Cameron has had problems. Michael, 65, blamed himself, saying he was an absentee father when Cameron was young and Diandra was young and inexperienced. He also said there was a family history of addiction on both sides of the family.

In March, a judge sentenced Cameron Douglas to five years for dealing methamphetamine from a trendy Manhattan hotel.