Being honest. John Travolta opened up about losing his wife, Kelly Preston, one year ago and how he discussed her death with their young son on Kevin Hart’s Hart to Heart talk show.
The Grease star, 67, told the comedian, 42, about the tender conversation he shared with son Benjamin, 10. Travolta recalled taking a walk with the elementary schooler in their neighborhood one night when Benjamin told him, “Because mom passed away, I’m afraid you’re going to.”
His fear prompted the Saturday Night Fever actor to open up about loss and grief.
“I said, ‘Well, it’s a very different thing,’” Travolta recalled during the Peacock interview, which was released earlier this week. “And I went through the differences about my longevity and her limited life. I said, ‘But you know, Ben, you always love the truth and I’m going to tell you the truth about life. Nobody knows when they’re gonna go or when they’re going to stay.’”
He continued, “Your brother [Jett] left at 16. Too young. Your mother left at 57. That was too young. But who’s to say? I could die tomorrow. You could. Anybody can. So let’s look at it like it’s part of life. You don’t know exactly. You just do your best at trying to live the longest you can.”
Preston died on July 12, 2020, at the age of 57 after battling breast cancer.
“It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer,” the Pulp Fiction star wrote in an Instagram post at the time. “She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many. My family and I will forever be grateful to her doctors and nurses at MD Anderson Cancer Center, all the medical centers that have helped, as well as her many friends and loved ones who have been by her side. Kelly’s love and life will always be remembered.”
He added in his post, “I will be taking some time to be there for my children who have lost their mother, so forgive me in advance if you don’t hear from us for a while,” he concluded. “But please know that I will feel your outpouring of love in the weeks and months ahead as we heal. All my love, JT.”
The Gotti actress married Travolta in 1991, and they shared three children — Jett, Ella, 21, and Benjamin. Jett died in January 2009 at the age of 16 from a seizure.
