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In a way, John Travolta is like the “Teflon Don” John Gotti, the infamous gangster he plays in his new movie.
Sexual harassment scandals don’t seem stick to Travolta, unlike other powerful male celebrities, and neither do all the gay rumors that have followed his career over the decades. Meanwhile, the 64-year-old actor is currently facing withering reviews for “Gotti,” his sympathetic biopic of the “Dapper Don” mobster and murderer.
But Travolta has dealt with serious professional lows before, notably before his comeback in “Pulp Fiction” in 1994. And he seems unfazed these days by anyone’s impression that he’s an oddball, a hack or worse. His equanimity was on full display as he recently enjoyed adoration from the crowds at the Cannes Film Festival, according to Daily Beast writer Dana Kennedy.
So, how does Travolta keep going? In a new report, Kennedy offered possible explanations for Travolta’s resilience: the Church of Scientology and Kelly Preston, his wife of 27 years.
During a panel discussion at the film festival, Travolta himself credited Scientology for filling him with enduring confidence to mount career comebacks, reports said.
“I practice Scientology, and we do very simple things to get ourselves in better shape: take care of yourself, get good sleep, be better parents, be productive, be motivated,” Travolta told the audience. “It sounds simple, but they all contribute to your well-being.”
Indeed, Travolta and Preston are two of the most powerful and loyal Scientologists in the world, Kennedy noted. With the help of Scientology, and of Travolta’s well-compensated, high-profile Hollywood attorney Marty Singer, the couple have managed to ignore or “handle” the years of gay rumors and the accusations made against the actor that he sexually harassed or assaulted male masseurs and his former co-pilot.
But Kennedy said it’s not just Scientology that has helped Travolta survive various challenges, including the 2009 death of his 16-year-old autistic son Jett.
It’s Preston, his 55-year-old wife, described by Kennedy as a blonde, vivacious and “steely” devotee of Scientology. She’s “hard-core” when it comes to the organization, former members told Kennedy. For that reason, she “anchors” Travolta, and he’s “terrified” of losing her.
Karen de la Carriere, a former high-ranking Scientology executive, said that Travolta is “a bad boy who likes risky sexual adventures.” Meanwhile, Preston is “either deluded or more likely just deaf to the whole thing,” de la Carriere said. She explained that Scientology doctrine trains its members to ignore or to discount unpleasant news about themselves or the organization.
She said Preston has “been trained to think that these are evil people making things up”
“Kelly is a true believer,” added de la Carriere’s husband Jeffrey Augustine, who further explained that Travolta and Preston have reached such.a high level in Scientology that they never see its “ugly side.”
As Travolta said at the film festival, he’s devoted to being a good parent to his two living children, Ella Bleu, 18, and Ben, 7. He also likes to make movies, like “Gotti,” but he especially likes to fly his own planes, former members told Kennedy.
“John loves aviation more than Hollywood but because of Kelly he’d never leave Scientology,” Augustine told Kennedy. “He loves his family. He’s just got a dark side and he’s reckless. But he really has no reason to want to leave the church. People at his level never see the ugly side of the church. Plus he’s got OSA (Scientology’s Office of Special Affairs) as his own private Mafia if he gets into trouble.”
