John Travolta is an American treasure. The handsome star came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing in box office smashes such as Carrie (1976), Saturday Night Fever (1977), Grease (1978), and Urban Cowboy (1980). Travolta was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performances in Saturday Night Fever and Pulp Fiction.He won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for his performance in Get Shorty and has received a total of six nominations. In 2016, Travolta received his first Primetime Emmy Award, as a producer of the first season of the anthology series American Crime Story: The People v. O. J. Simpson. He also received an additional Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of lawyer Robert Shapiro in the series.Travolta's career declined throughout the 1980s, but he enjoyed a resurgence in the 1990s with his role in Pulp Fiction (1994). The film is written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, who conceived and also stars Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Ving Rhames, and Uma Thurman. The film is set in Los Angeles and tells the lives of two mob hit men, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits. The stories intertwine in four tales of violence and revenge.In 2008, Entertainment Weekly named it the best film since 1983. In 2013, Pulp Fiction was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." But did you know John Travolta almost turned down his role as Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction for another box office smash?
John Travolta Revealed That Tom Hanks 'Splash' Was Written For Him
1984 rom-com smash hit Splash starring Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah could have looked completely different had John Travolta accepted the lead role. Speaking to Kevin Hart on his streaming show Hart to Heart, Travolta said the Ron Howard directed comedy was written with him in mind. Hanks portrayed a man who falls in love with a woman who is secretly a mermaid, portrayed by Hannah.
The 68-year-old said: "The role in the Hanks film called Splash was written for me. But then we wouldn't have Tom Hanks, so let's have Tom Hanks." Splash was a success at the box office and received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay and took Hanks's career to the next level. Travolta joked that he could "take responsibility" for the careers of several stars who took roles he wasn't able to do.
John Travolta Turned Down 'Forrest Gump' For 'Pulp Fiction'
Forrest Gump (1994) American comedy-drama film starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Sally Field. The film follows the life of a slow-witted and kindhearted Alabama man named Forrest Gump (Hanks). The film was a worldwide smash hit and earned $678 million worldwide. Hanks won Best Actor for his heartfelt performance.
But the first choice for the role was John Travolta. By the 1990s, Travolta was in dire need of a career resurgence. After being offered the role of Forrest Gump, Travolta decided to turn the film down in favor of another project. His risk paid off when he accepted the role of Vincent Vega in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction – which revitalized his career.
The role led to the actor’s Oscar nomination against Tom Hanks for Forrest Gump, which Travolta subsequently lost. This was a second consecutive win for Tom Hanks who won Best Actor for Philadelphia the previous year. Both Pulp Fiction and Forrest Gump are both in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
'Gotti' Was A Box Office Bomb For John Travolta
John Travolta took eight years to make Gotti (2018). The film tells the real-life story of New York mobster John Gotti. He was nicknamed the “Teflon Don” for evading prosecution through the 1980s. But he was finally convicted for a string of murders in 1992 and sentenced to life in prison. He died in 2002. Unfortunately, Gotti was slated by film critics as the “worst mob movie ever”.
When it was finally released, in it earned the distinct displeasure of films scoring 0% on review website Rotten Tomatoes. It grossed just $6 million against a $10 million production budget and received universally negative reviews from critics, who blasted the writing, costume and performances. At the 39th Golden Raspberry Awards, the film was nominated for six Razzies, including Worst Picture and Worst Actor for Travolta.
