How Ella Travolta's Life Changed After Her Brother Jett's Tragic Death
John Travolta's only daughter, Ella Bleu Travolta, experienced a devastating loss early in her life. She was only eight years old when her older brother, Jett Travolta, tragically died.
During a trip to the Bahamas in 2009 for what was supposed to be an enjoyable family vacation, Jett unexpectedly died. Reuters reported that a Bahamas funeral home representative ruled that his death was the result of a "seizure disorder." It was also reported that the seizure occurred after he hit his head in a bathtub. In a 2012 episode of "The Doctors," the family matriarch, the late Kelly Preston, shed light on Jett's health condition. She said that he was on the autism spectrum and that "he had seizures, and when he was very young, he had Kawasaki Syndrome."
"Jett was the most wonderful son that two parents could ever ask for and lit up the lives of everyone he encountered," John said in a statement following Jett's death. "We are heartbroken that our time with him was so brief. We will cherish the time that we had with him for the rest of our lives." Apparently, it was also John who took Jett's death the hardest, and during his time of grief, he practically became a shell of himself, which affected the rest of his relationships, including his bond with Ella.
Ella Travolta briefly lost her father too
John Travolta was rendered inconsolable following Jett Travolta's death — so much so that it may have had an adverse impact on his relationship with Ella Travolta. "Jett looked at John as if he was the sun and the moon," Travolta family attorney Michael McDermott told People. "And John reciprocated." On the night Jett died, another one of their lawyers, Mike Ossi, shared with the outlet that the "Grease" actor "didn't want anything to happen to that boy, and he kept on trying to revive him."
John later admitted that he was so distraught over what happened that he no longer found meaning in living. "I didn't know if I was going to make it," he confessed. "Life was no longer interesting to me." He said that for two years, he was ravaged with grief that his fellow Scientologists had to be by his side around the clock. "They didn't take a day off, working through different angles of the techniques to get through grief and loss, and to make me feel that finally I could get through a day," the actor explained.
This, of course, may have meant that his bond with Ella wavered, but luckily, she still had her mother, Kelly Preston, as an emotional crutch. Her parents also supported her in the premiere of "Old Dogs," her first major acting gig. "We decided it was OK to come out and promote, to introduce her to the world and to give her a beautiful future in film," John said.
Ella and John Travolta are now closer than ever
Ella and John Travolta, along with John's other son, Ben, experienced another tragic loss in 2020 when Kelly Preston passed. But despite being stricken with grief, the family continued and healed as a unit. "The most important thing you can do to help another when they are in mourning is to allow them to experience it and not complicate it with yours," John said during an interview with Esquire Spain.
But now, Ella and John have reached a point where their bond is much stronger. The actor always supports his daughter in whatever creative endeavor she decides to pursue, whether that be acting, participating in a campaign, making music, or walking on fashion week. "He's my biggest fan and I'm his biggest fan, so there's a lot of support going on, which is—it's amazing," Ella told Parade of their relationship. "I learn so much from him all the time."
John is also committed to being the most supportive dad he can be. "I am going to ensure the future of my children, help them with what they want to do with their lives," he added. "It is what I do with Ella now with her films and teaching her to work in the profession. Ben is barely ten years old. I want to help him evolve, he has his whole life ahead of him."