Inside John Travolta's emotional Cannes return after stepping away from the spotlight: 'The last thing I expected'

John Travolta flew himself to Cannes and has made several appearances already on the red carpet, a move that's a far cry from the private life he's been living in recent years. 

The 72-year-old is at the Cannes Film Festival to premiere his directorial debut, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, a rare appearance for a very special movie. 

But while that was meant to be the big moment, the Hollywood star was given an honorary Palme d'Or, with the moment bringing him to tears. 

"I can't believe this. This is the last thing I expected," Travolta said, getting visibly emotional on stage last Friday. 

"You said this would be a special night, but I didn't think you meant this. This is a humbling moment. This is beyond the Oscar."

Travolta walked the red carpet alongside the film's cast earlier in the evening, which includes his daughter Ella Bleu Travolta as well as Clark Shotwell, Kelly Eviston-Quinnett and Olga Hoffman. 

Propeller One-Way Night Coach is based on Travolta's 1997 book of the same name, about an eight-year-old boy named Jeff who loves aviation and takes a cross-country flight with his mom to Hollywood. Travolta wrote the book for his late son, Jett.

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The fact that the film was even accepted to Cannes is something that still blows him away, and he recalled the moment Festival head Thierry Frémaux told him it was happening. 

"When I met with [Frémaux] in November, I had no expectation that my film would be accepted, and when Thierry said it was... making history because it would be the first film being accepted that early, I cried like a baby," Travolta said while accepting the award.

"This is the blueprint of my life and everyone that was in the movie is sitting in the audience right there, my family, and this is why this film exists and why I exist as an artist because of that group of people right there."

Travolta's life has been turbulent, with some of the highest highs in success in his entertainment career, and three deeply heartbreaking tragedies in his personal life. 

In 1976 he met Diana Hyland on the set of The Boy in the Plastic Bubble and was instantly smitten. 

The actress, who was 18 years older than him, played his mother in the TV drama film, and after a month on set things became romantic. 

But after two years of dating, Hyland was diagnosed with breast cancer and while he was filming Saturday Night Fever her health declined quickly, forcing him to fly home to Los Angeles. 

Travolta was with her until the very end, she was 41 when she died. 

"I gave her great joy the last months of her life," Travolta recalled to People. "I always feel she is with me – I mean, her intentions are. Diana always wanted the world for me in every possible way."

Then, 10 years later, he found love with Kelly Preston, and after they married in Paris in 1991, they went on to welcome three children. 

Jett was born in 1992, Ella Bleu in 2000 and Benjamin, born in 2010. 

In January 2009 tragedy struck again, and Jett died at the age of just 16. 

The family was on holiday at the time in the Bahamas and Jett, who was autistic and regularly had seizures, died after hitting his head on a bathtub mid-seizure. 

Travolta and Preston confirmed the devastating news of their son's passing in a statement. "Jett was the most wonderful son that two parents could ever ask for and lit up the lives of everyone he encountered," said the couple. 

"We are heartbroken that our time with him was so brief. We will cherish the time we had with him for the rest of our lives."

But out of that heartbreak, Travolta founded the Jett Travolta Foundation, which aims to "assist and provide relief to children with vision, hearing, mobility, communication, behaviour learning impairments or other special medical, environmental, health or educational needs."

Then in 2020, he was hit with another loss. 

On July 12, Travolta confirmed that Preston had died at 57, following a secret battle with breast cancer. 

He announced the news on Instagram and 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 Centre, all the medical centres 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. 

"I will be taking some time to be there for my children who have lost their mother, so 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."

In the years since, Travolta has put a focus into his children and life away from in front of the camera. 

Travolta recently celebrated his 72nd birthday with another pilot license, for a Bombardier Global Express.

He has been a licensed pilot since 22, and since starting his pilot career, he has become qualified to pilot several different planes including the Boeing 747, 707 and 737.

Clearly, a strong passion of his, he also recently donated a rare Boeing 707-138, once owned by Frank Sinatra, to Australia's Historical Aircraft Restoration Society at Albion Park.

The aircraft only just arrived Down Under, a truly special piece of history which will soon be on display.

But aside from flying, he's become known for the loving and proud tributes he shares online for his kids and to mark anniversaries for his late wife Preston. 

Despite his mammoth fame, it's clear that in recent years Travolta has stepped back from the spotlight, although the debut at Cannes of the personal movie, will no doubt put him back into it.

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