Olivia Newton-John Was ‘Nervous’ When She Filmed The ‘Grease’ Kissing Scene With John Travolta

Feb 22, 2023 by apost team

On Aug. 8, 2022, the world lost one of its brightest stars — Olivia Newton-John. She was a British-Australian performer best known for her work as an actress, singer and activist. The acclaimed entertainer won several awards over the course of her life and was honored by fans and critics alike. Newton-John released several albums and chart-topping singles, making her one of the best-selling music artists following the second half of the 20th century. 

And who could forget her turn in the 1978 musical film “Grease,” alongside John Travolta? The film catapulted the performer to fame and made her a household name, showing off her sweet yet powerful vocals and great acting chops. Even today, people are still singing the songs from the “Grease” soundtrack and dressing up as Danny and Sandy for costume parties.

But aside from “Hopelessly Devoted To You” and “You're The One That I Want” from “Grease,” Newton-John was also responsible for singing perhaps some of the decade-defining hits of the late 1970s to the 1980s. 

The music legend was responsible for the hits “Physical,” “If You Love Me (Let Me Know),” “Have You Never Been Mellow,” “A Little More Love” and “Twist of Fate,” among many others. 

Still, there’s no denying that people will always link Newton-John to her iconic performance of Sandy in “Grease.” In January 2021, Newton-John recalled how her iconic on-screen kiss with Travolta went down, confessing to Us Weekly what she felt at the time when the scene was shot. 

Read on to learn more about Newton-John and Travolta’s friendship and the details of how her first on-screen kiss took place!

It’s hard to believe that at first, Newton-John wasn’t happy about accepting the offered role of Sandy in “Grease.” During an interview with Entertainment Tonight in 2020, Newton-John revealed that many other actresses were in the running for the part, so there was a good chance she would never have made the cut.

However, Travolta seemed to be very much in favor of Newton-John.

“I was really quite hesitant to be in Grease, so they sent John Travolta to talk me into it. And how can you say no to those blue eyes?” Newton-John said. Convinced, she signed on, and her career took off.

Their friendship went two ways, as Travolta boasted about how Newton-John was always there for him as well. 

“When you share that kind of meteoric success – and nothing has been able to exceed it – you share a bond,” he explained. “Olivia’s quite a spectacular human being. She’s worthy of good friendship.”

Newton-John’s portrayal of the doe-eyed Sandy and Travolta’s Danny Zuko went down to be a cult classic in pop culture. Coupled with the still beloved tracks like “Summer Nights,” “Born To Hand Jive,” and “We Go Together,” the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Although the film, in its entirety, was iconic, perhaps the most distinguishable moments of it took place in the first few seconds – Danny and Sandy’s kiss on the beach – which marks the character’s first meeting, followed by their coincidental introduction at Rydell High weeks after. 

In an interview in 2021, Newton-John recalled the moment they shot the scene, which gave her butterflies in her stomach. 

apost.com

Newton-John was only 30 years old at the time “Grease” was released, and she only had three official film acting credits under her belt. In an interview with Us Weekly, Newton-John looked back on her fond memories of shooting her intimate kissing scene with Travolta for “Grease.”

“It was at the beach — actually, the opening scene of the movie. It was a beautiful day. We were playing around in the water, and I don’t really remember exactly, but it was a very lovely day and an exciting moment because it was the start of the film, although everything was kind of out of order, but we did that. That was the first time we had kissed,” Newton-John confessed. 

After “Grease,” the two became very close friends, but Newton-John was actually feeling the nerves right before they locked lips on screen. 

“I was nervous of course. I remember just before that, we were sitting on a rock and it’s actually in the movie that these waves broke over us. These rogue waves came in. And I can’t remember if that was before or after that because my hair was perfect. So maybe it was after that,” she elaborated. “It was a very special day, and it was really a nice way to get to know John a little bit because we hadn’t spent all that much time together. 

Newton-John described the day of the filming, which took place over 40 years ago, to be “special” and “lovely.” 

There’s no denying that Newton-John and Travolta had a beautiful friendship over the years. So when Newton-John passed away on Aug. 8, 2022, Travolta went to Instagram to share some sweet words about his late friend. He uploaded a stunning photograph of the late actress and a thoughtful message recalling their incredible friendship. 

Have you seen the movie “Grease”? Are you an Olivia Newton-John fan? What can you say about her friendship with John Travolta? What can you say about the story of her first on-screen kiss? Let us know, and pass this on to your friends, family and other loved ones!