John Travolta and his daughter, Ella, are once again sharing the big screen, this time in the upcoming survival thriller, Black Tides.
The film, which has recently begun filming in Gran Canaria, Spain, will feature 71-year-old Travolta in the lead role alongside Melissa Barrera, with 25-year-old Ella taking on a key supporting role.
While Travolta and Ella have acted together before, this marks her fifth overall screen role, following appearances in films like Old Dogs (2009) and The Poison Rose (2019) with her father, and the upcoming Get Lost and Nice People.
Details about Ella’s specific character have not yet been released.
Black Tides centers on Travolta's character, Bill Pierce, an estranged father desperately trying to mend his relationship with his daughter (played by Barrera) and his grandson (Dylan Torrell) during a sailing trip off the Spanish coast.
However, their family reconciliation is quickly turned into a fight for survival when their boat is violently attacked by a pod of rogue orcas.
The disaster forces the ship’s crew into a harrowing battle on the open sea.
Producer Adrián Guerra noted the challenging nature of the project but praised the results, telling Deadline, "Shooting at sea is one of the hardest things you can do in film but the footage we’re getting is stunning.
The cast has bonded in a way that’s rare and powerful, and Renny’s directing chops are on full display — balancing raw spectacle with real human emotion.”
The opportunity to work together comes as the Travolta family continues to honour the memory of the late actress and model Kelly Preston, Travolta’s wife and Ella’s mother.
Preston, who appeared in over 60 films, passed away in 2020 at age 57 after a two-year private fight with breast cancer.
Upon her passing, Travolta announced the loss on Instagram, writing, “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,” adding, “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.”
The couple also shared a younger son, Benjamin, 14, and their eldest son, Jett, who passed away in the Bahamas in 2009 at age 16 after suffering a seizure.
Ella recently posted a loving tribute on Instagram to her mother, five years after her death, for Mother's Day, saying she loves her and wishing "Happy Mother’s Day to the strongest, most beautiful, loving, funny, smart woman I know.”
