John Travolta makes his directorial debut at Cannes: I'm exhausted from so much cynicism about life'

"Last December, John Travolta told Thierry Fremaux, the general delegate of Cannes, that he had finished his first film as a director, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, which premieres on Apple TV on May 29. But I don't know, he hesitated. Send it to me, the Frenchman shot back. A few days later, Fremaux called him and said: For the first time in the history of Cannes, I'm going to do this. I'm selecting it for the festival myself and don't touch it. It's perfect. But let me protect it."

"Travolta, 72, recounts the story with a smile. That's why he put it in the Cannes Premiere section. What I didn't expect was the other thing. His doubts came from the fact that the film runs 61 minutes just long enough to qualify as a feature rather than a mediumlength film. And the other thing was the Honorary Palme d'Or he received at the start of Friday's gala screening. No one knew not my family, not my team, not Apple. Thierry kept it to himself and gave me that gift."

"Sitting next to him is his daughter, Ella Bleu, who appears in the film as a warm, attentive flight attendant. She speaks just like her father and has the same blue eyes. In fact, she is the Travolta who appears the most in Propeller One-Way Night Coach. Five of John Travolta's siblings also have roles, and the film is dedicated to all of them as well as to his parents, his wife Kelly Preston (who died in 2020), and his son Jett (who died at 17 in 2009 after an epileptic seizure). That's why their names and the whole family appear."

"That's where the interview begins, with one condition agreed in advance: no questions unrelated to Propeller One-Way Night Coach Question. Filming with the family was it a way to bring everyone together, a guilty pleasure, or simply something"

John Travolta finished his first film as a director, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, and told Thierry Fremaux about it. Fremaux hesitated at first, then decided to select the film himself for Cannes Premiere and asked that it not be changed. The film’s 61-minute runtime raised doubts about whether it qualified as a feature. Travolta also received an Honorary Palme d’Or at the Cannes gala, which he did not expect. The film includes his daughter Ella Bleu as a flight attendant and features multiple siblings in roles. The dedication extends to his parents, his late wife Kelly Preston, and his late son Jett, with family names appearing throughout. The interview begins with a condition to focus only on the film.

Read at english.elpais.com