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John Travolta Reveals the ‘Glue’ That’s Rebonded His Family Since Son Jett’s Death

John Travolta opened up in an interview with Good Morning America about how his family has coped since the loss of his son Jett, who died in January 2009 at age 16. 

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The actor’s eldest son, who he shared with wife Kelly Preston, passed away unexpectedly from a seizure while the family was on vacation in the Bahamas.

John Travolta, Kelly Preston, Ella and Jett
John Travolta, his wife, Kelly Preston, and their children, Ella and Jett.

“Certainly having little Ben has been a beautiful kind of glue for us to rebond after a tremendous loss,” the American Crime Story actor said of his 5-year-old son, who was born in 2010, 22 months after Jett’s death. The couple also share a 16-year-old daughter, Ella Bleu.

Related: PHOTOS: Travolta Family Photo Album

John Travolta
John Travolta attends the 87th Annual Academy Awards.

The Pulp Fiction star, 62, who rarely speaks about his son’s death, previously said during an onstage interview at London’s Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, that Jett’s passing was “the worst thing that’s ever happened in my life … The truth is, I didn’t know if I was going to make it,” he said. “Life was no longer interesting to me, so it took a lot to get me better.”

John Travolta and Jett
Jett is seen with John Travolta.

Now Travolta is costarring with his wife, 53, in a new film, The Life and Death of John Gotti, and Ella and Ben have been a constant presence on set in Cincinnati. Travolta is starring as the notorious real-life mobster while Preston plays his wife, the equally larger-than-life Victoria.

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The Grease actor told Us Weekly that he was surprised to learn Gotti had a compassionate side. “There’s a lot of unspoken favors and good deeds that were done,” he said. “That was very impressive, and I didn’t know that. He was a man of the people.”

Travolta, who has collaborated with Preston on several films, said he’s excited to act alongside his wife again. “We met acting, so it’s very familiar and comfortable territory, so that’s the easy part,” he told Us. Ella was supposed to have a part in the movie, too, but Travolta said she changed her mind. “She decided not to at the last minute,” he said. “She’s going to wait.”

The Life and Death of John Gotti is expected to hit theaters in 2017. 

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