John Travolta
Biography
John Travolta is an American actor who started on television and became a leading film performer. Born in Englewood, New Jersey, he gained attention as Vinnie Barbarino in the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter, then appeared in Carrie (1976). He received an Academy Award nomination for Saturday Night Fever (1977) and starred in Grease (1978). A second Academy Award nomination came for Pulp Fiction (1994), which helped revive his career. He went on to star in Get Shorty (1995), for which he won a Golden Globe, plus Broken Arrow (1996), Michael (1996), Face/Off (1997), Primary Colors (1998), A Civil Action (1998), and The General's Daughter (1999). He later starred in Hairspray (2007) and voiced the title character in Bolt (2008). On television he played lawyer Robert Shapiro in The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story, winning an Emmy as a producer and receiving a supporting actor nomination; he was also Emmy-nominated for Die Hart.
72years old
Turns 73 on February 18in 123 days
- Born Englewood
- Star sign: AquariusLast day of the sign, on the Pisces cusp
- John Joseph Travolta (birth name)Also credited as Jonathan Joseph Travolta and Jonathan Travolta
Movie Career
- Films
- 71
- Career span
- 51 years1975 to 2026
Genres
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A role that slipped away
Travolta was offered lead roles in American Gigolo and An Officer and a Gentleman but declined both, and Richard Gere took the parts. He also turned down Splash, which went to Tom Hanks.
First role
In September 1972, Travolta played a fall victim on Emergency!, which was his first screen role in California. His first significant movie part came as Billy Nolan, a bully in the horror film Carrie.
Behind the award
Saturday Night Fever brought Travolta a nomination for Best Actor at the Academy Awards. At 24, he became one of the youngest performers ever nominated in that category.
Behind the camera
Travolta's 2000 film Battlefield Earth was a dream project he had wanted since 1982, when author L. Ron Hubbard wrote to him about making a film adaptation.
Behind the camera
At the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, Travolta's first turn as a director, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, had its premiere, and he was given an Honorary Palme d'Or there as well.
John Travolta movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Most often with
John Woo directed two of these films, Randal Kleiser two and Brian De Palma two. Four actors appear in five of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Bruce Willis's page
James Gandolfini's page
Luis Da Silva Jr.'s page
Nick Loren's page
Kelly Preston's page
Kirstie Alley's page
All films by John Woo
All films by Randal Kleiser
Also four films together2 more actors
- Tait RuppertBasic (2003), Domestic Disturbance (2001), Swordfish (2001) and Battlefield Earth (2000)
- Margaret TravoltaPropeller One-Way Night Coach (2026), Wild Hogs (2007), Basic (2003) and Michael (1996)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Box office
What John Travolta's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$4.3 billion
49 of the 71 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 71 films: 49 worldwide figure; 4 us gross only; 3 never in cinemas; 1 streaming, short cinema run; 13 figure not found; 1 too new to count.
- 49Worldwide figure
- 4US gross only
- 3Never in cinemas
- 1Streaming, short cinema run
- 13Figure not found
- 1Too new to count
Top grosser
Highest grossing
The eight biggest films earned 49% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$396M9.3% of the total
- 2$310M7.2% of the total
- 3$297M6.9% of the total
- 4$254M5.9% of the total
- 5$246M5.7% of the total
- 6$237M5.5% of the total
- 7$214M5.0% of the total
- 8$152M3.6% of the total
$2.2 billionfrom the other 41 films with a worldwide figure, 51% of the total
Awards
Seven awards and honors from 1996 to 2026, one of them major.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Globes | |||
| 1996 | Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy | Get Shorty | Won |
| Other honors | |||
| 2026 | Honorary Palme d'Or | Honorary | |
| 2012 | Donostia Award | Won | |
| 2011 | New Jersey Hall of Fame | Won | |
| David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actor | Won | ||
| IAS Freedom Medal | Won | ||
| Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame | Honored | ||
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.