John Travolta celebrated his 26-year-old daughter, Ella Bleu — whom he shared with the late Kelly Preston — after she walked the red carpet at an event.
Travolta, 72, took to Instagram on Wednesday, April 8, to gush over Ella Bleu attending the Fashion Trust U.S. Awards in Los Angeles, writing, “So proud of my baby [email protected] at the 2026 fashion US awards pink carpet.”
The actor also announced that Ella Bleu would be in his upcoming directorial debut, Propeller One-Way Night Coach. Ella Bleu, for her part, previously gave her father a shout-out after the film was confirmed to be premiering at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival.
“So very honored and excited. Thank you @festivaldecannes ❤️ incredibly proud of you and this film, @johntravolta 🙏,” Ella Bleu captioned a post on Wednesday, which included a black-and-white photo of Travolta sitting in the director’s chair on the set of the movie.
In addition to Ella, Preston and Travolta also shared son Benjamin, 15, and son Jett, who died at age 16 while on vacation with his family in 2009. Preston died at age 57 in 2020, two years after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many,” Travolta wrote via Instagram while announcing Preston’s death. “Forgive me in advance if you don’t hear from us for a while. But please know that I will feel your outpouring of love in the weeks and months ahead as we heal.”
A source told Us Weekly at the time that Preston was “the heart and soul who kept the family united” and that she and John were “true partners.” Travolta has continued to celebrate Preston’s memory on her birthday and Mother’s Day in the years since.
Travolta later opened up about the candid conversations he’s had with son Benjamin about loss.
“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,” Travolta told Kevin Hart during an interview in 2021. “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.”
He added, “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.”
Ella Bleu, meanwhile, honored her mother with her debut EP, Colors of Love.
“[My mother’s death has] definitely been something that I had wanted to communicate and had been thinking about, obviously, for many years,” she shared on Today in November 2024. “I think it’s different for each person, going through loss. But for me, personally, it was just this pure message that I wanted to give to my mom.”
Her music video featured home videos of herself and Preston. “There was a lot of crying, but they were happy tears,” she said about compiling the footage. “And I wanted it to be a celebration too of her life, ’cause it’s all those best, most happy moments. And that’s how I remember her.”
Despite how emotional the experience was for Ella, she was happy to have her dad’s support as a producer on the project. “I love working with my dad. If I could always do it, I would,” she added at the time. “He’s amazing and he’s so protective because he’s been in the movie industry and the music industry forever, so he knows how to protect me in that sense.”
