John Travolta Looks As Handsome As Ever Without Hair Nowadays

Nov 10, 2021

John Travolta has been stealing hearts since the 1970s. The heartthrob burst onto Hollywood's scene when he appeared in a succession of films including "Saturday Night Fever" and "Grease," and quickly he became a rising star. And although his career has had its ups and downs, he's always managed to rise back to the top.

Now almost 70 years old, John is in a different stage of his life, but he's certainly still a heartthrob. His looks haven't changed all too much, but his hair, just like his acting career, has also had quite the journey. From long '70s styles to short cuts and now, a shaved head, John's hairdos over the years have run the full gamut. These days he's sporting a shaved head and honestly, he looks just as hot as ever, proving that with his face, he truly can pull off any style.

Sadly, the last year has been a difficult one for John and his family, as his wife of nearly three decades, actress Kelly Preston, passed away in July 2020 after a battle with breast cancer. Since then John has made a few public mentions of the family's loss, as has his lookalike daughter Ella Bleu Travolta.

After taking some time to grieve in private and to be there for his daughter and son, John began making a reappearance on social media in late 2020, often posting moving tributes to his late wife and honoring her legacy. Ella Bleu has also taken to social media to honor her late mother, as well as sharing just how important family — and her dad — are to her.

Born into a family with Italian and Irish heritage in Englewood, New Jersey on February 18, 1954, John Travolta was the youngest of six children. His mother was an actress and singer before she became a high school drama and English teacher, which inspired all of the Travolta children to pursue acting. 

After dropping out of school, John moved to New York City and landed some work on Broadway before taking his aspirations to Los Angeles. It didn't take too long before he was noticed and by the mid-'70s he had parts in the cult classic horror movie "Carrie" and the TV show "Welcome Back, Kotter." He even released a song titled "Let Her In," which made it to the Billboard Hot 100's top 10.

After starring in "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble," John got his big break, not once but twice. He first appeared in 1977's "Saturday Night Fever" in a role that earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor, making him one of the youngest ever nominees in the category at the age of 24. 

The following year he starred as Danny Zuko in "Grease," a role with which he's still often associated. He put his vocal abilities to use once more, singing several songs in the film. His back-to-back appearance in two of the decade's most commercially successful movies catapulted him to international stardom. To this day, these two films are generally his most noted screen roles, and their enduring popularity has even meant that the actor still references the characters he played.

By the end of the '70s John was one of Hollywood's leading men, so nobody could have expected the downturn that his career took in the 1980s. After multiple films of his were commercially and critically panned, the actor seemingly couldn't catch a break. He even turned down roles in "American Gigolo" and "An Officer and a Gentleman" — both of which went to Richard Gere — and regretfully, they were huge box-office hits.

But just as things can go down, they can just as easily come back up, and that's exactly what happened to John's career in the 1990s. He finally got another box-office hit with "Look Who's Talking," which prompted two sequels. Following this, he appeared in Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction," and his turn as Vincent Vega not only earned him an Oscar nomination but propelled him back onto Hollywood's A-list. The second half of the decade saw him appear in notable films such as "Get Shorty," "Broken Arrow," "Face/Off," "The General's Daughter" and many more. 

Now that he had cemented his status in Hollywood once again, John continued to work into the 2000s and on. Notable appearances in this decade include "Battlefield Earth," "Swordfish," "Be Cool," "Wild Hogs," and even a return to musicals with "Hairspray." John still continues to act but not to the frequency he once did. In the last few years, he's shifted his focus to family, which is why the premature death of their matriarch is all the more tragic. Let's take a look at John's relationship and family life. 

John first met Kelly Preston in 1987 at a screen test for "The Experts," but as Preston was married to someone else, it took a few more years for them to get together. But eventually, by September 1991 the couple had tied the knot, first in France followed by a second wedding in Florida. 

Shortly after the couple discussed they were thinking about children, revealing to Entertainment Tonight, as reported by People magazine: 

"We plan to have some babies. We’re practicing right now. This could be barefoot and pregnant for the next 10 years.”

Soon after their first son Jett Travolta was born, he was registered on the Autism spectrum and diagnosed with Kawasaki disease at 15 months.  From the age of 2, he began to have regular seizures. Fast forward to the year 2000, when their daughter Ella Bleu Travolta was born. Things were going well for the family of four, but then tragedy struck. On January 2, 2009, Jett passed away after having a seizure. The family grieved for some time, and an extortion plot surrounding Jett's death only added to the tragedy of what they were going through.

But by 2011 the family had some positive news — they announced the birth of their second son Benjamin Travolta. Speaking with People magazine at the time, Travolta said that their new son had "given the house a renewed spirit and purpose." He also told Good Morning America in a 2016 interview:

"We certainly have bonded together. And certainly, having little Ben has been a beautiful kind of glue for us to rebond after tremendous loss."

Preston, who was 57 at the time of her death, was a well-known actress, starring in such movies as "Jerry Maguire," "Twins," and "For the Love of the Game." Tragically, her life was cut short when she passed away in July 2020 following a two-year “courageous fight” against breast cancer, which she kept hidden away from the public. Her death was announced by John on Instagram, who wrote:

"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. 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."

After announcing he'd be taking time off to be there for his children Ella and Ben as they all mourned Preston's passing, John went offline from his social media accounts for a while But by later in the year, he had returned, with many of his posts honoring his late wife. One such example was in August when John shared a video of him dancing with his daughter in honor of Preston. He explained why they were dancing in the video, writing:

"My daughter @ella.travolta and I dancing in memory of momma. One of Kelly’s favorite things, dancing with me." 

Then on Preston's birthday on October 13, he posted a photo of him and her on their wedding day alongside his own parents at their wedding. He captioned the moving post with words directed to his late wife:

"Happy Birthday hon! I found this photo of my mom and dad‘s wedding. It was nice to see ours alongside theirs. All my love, John."

Meanwhile, Ella also wrote a post for her late mom's birthday by sharing a photo of the two of them from when she was a toddler, in which Preston is laughing beautifully while holding her. She captioned it with a simple "Happy Birthday Mama, I love you so much❤️❤️❤️"

While the family had the support of the public and other celebrities, it was only natural that they would want to grieve in private. However, as they've each opened up a little more through their Instagram posts, sharing sweet memories of Preston, it's been wonderful to see them move on from their loss while keeping her spirit alive.

What's more, we're seeing a lot of bonding moments between John and Ella specifically. In fact, the father and daughter even starred in a Super Bowl commercial this year in a nod to "Grease." The Scotts Miracle-Gro ad featured John and Ella in their lush, green backyard, as they recreated the famous hand jive scene from the prom in the movie. Beginning with John struggling to find the record button on a smartphone that's set up to film them, the ad cuts to the two of them performing the exact same moves that John did over 40 years earlier! Despite the choice to dance to a different song, John and Ella's hand jive moves are on point and another sweet moment that showcases just how close they are as a family.

One aspect that was markedly different than in his "Grease" days was that in the commercial, John is sporting his now-signature bald head, while in the film he's got a shiny head of thick black hair, which was one of his first signature hairstyles when he sky-rocketed to success. In fact, the actor's hair has had quite the journey over the years. When he burst onto the scene in the '70s, John's hair perfectly fit the trends of the time, as he wore it luscious and fairly long. There's no denying that his gorgeous mane only added to his sex appeal and it certainly helped to contrast against his tanned skin and sparkling blue eyes.

As "Grease" was set in the '50s, he cut back his hair and sported a slicked-back pompadour in that movie. This only added to the bad-boy appeal of his character Danny Zuko, complete with his T-Birds leather jacket and a cigarette dangling from his mouth. 

By the time he starred in Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction" in 1994, John had yet another memorable hairdo. As hitman Vincent Vega, John's hair was a shoulder-grazing pushed-back style that was accentuated with a pronounced widow's peak. After this, he continued to wear his hair short for a couple of decades, with his widow's peak becoming his new signature. 

But in 2019 he felt the winds calling for a change and that's when he decided to shave it all off. Speaking with People, he told the magazine his new look felt "great," explaining:

"Listen, my new look came on a whim. It was a New Year’s Eve idea. Because everyone liked it so much, I decided to keep it for a while. So, we’ll see.”

Well, it seems the public not only liked his shaved head, they absolutely loved it! After reaching one million followers on his Instagram, John shared a video of him and Benjamin, in which he thanks his fans for helping him reach one million. He wears a cap the entire time, before taking it off at the end and exclaiming with a smile, “Thanks for liking the new hair 'do." 

It's unclear exactly what prompted him to shave it all off, but judging from his Instagram comments and the response from his fans, it's now a firm favorite of the actor's looks. And we can understand why. Firstly, it takes a lot of confidence to rock a bald head, so it shows that John is comfortable in his own skin doing so. Secondly, just as his mane emphasized his gorgeous eyes in his youth, his shaved head provides no distractions from them now. Lastly, it lends the actor a rocker edge, just as his slicked pompadour once did. And it even has Ella's stamp of approval. In the same People interview, John added:

“She loves it. And she’s a beauty, isn’t she?"

It's hard to disagree with your incredibly beautiful and stylish daughter! But even though he's stayed loyal to his shaved head, he did have fun in 2019 when he sported a short wig while dressing up as Danny Zuko once more. During a special event in Florida titled "Meet 'N' Grease," John and his co-star Olivia Newton-John dressed up as their characters from the film and they looked incredible! With his pompadour a subtler brown this time around, the moment was a glimpse into what Danny and Sandy's future would have looked like. 

But hair or no hair, John Travolta will always be a heartthrob in our eyes.

Are you a fan of John Travolta? Which hairdo of his is your favorite? If you loved this trip down memory lane, be sure to pass it on to your friends too!