John Travolta Gives Rare Comment About Late Wife and Son: 'Life Has Tested Me'

John Travolta is giving some rare insight into the personal struggles he dealt with following the deaths of both his wife and son earlier in his lifetime, a topic the Grease actor discussed at some length in a recent interview with La Repubblica.

As part of the work he's doing for his new film Propeller One-Way Night Coach, the 72-year-old star specifically said he dedicated the movie to his late wife Kelly Preston, his son Jett, his parents and his siblings that have since passed away.

"I dedicated the film to Kelly, to my son Jett, to my brothers and sisters, to my mother and my father, because they are the model from which this film was born," Travolta said.

In 2009, Travolta's 16-year-old son Jett tragically died after suffering an accidental fall triggered by a seizure. In 2020, Travolta lost his longtime wife Kelly after Preston passed away from breast cancer at the age of 57.

When reflecting on the personal losses he's suffered in the past, Travolta revealed "life has certainly tested me." However, he also said he remains hopeful for the future, plainly stating that it's his "nature is to look for the positive, even in the face of the worst."

"I'm not made to remain absorbed in the darkness," Travolta explained. "I can look at the darkness, but I don't choose to die in that darkness."

As Travolta mentioned, this core belief in light over darkness is a theme explored in the course of his semi-autobiographical new film. Based on Travolta's 1997 children's book, Propeller One-Way Night Coach follows an eight-year-old boy on his first flight in 1962.

To that end, Travolta included an emotional exploration of some harrowing historical topics, as seen through the eyes of the movie's eight-year-old protagonist.

"I wanted this sincerity," he said of the film. "A child's hope and resilience are unique; we adults have forgotten what that means. As a child, I always looked at the glass half full; I thought life could be better."

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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 11:27 AM.