IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Actress Kelly Preston dies at 57 after battle with breast cancer

"She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many," Preston's husband, John Travolta, wrote early Monday.
/ Source: TODAY

Actress Kelly Preston died Sunday at 57 after a two-year bout with breast cancer, her husband, actor John Travolta, announced.

"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," Travolta wrote on Instagram early Monday.

"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 Center, all the medical centers 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," the 66-year-old added. "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..."

JERRY MAGUIRE, Kelly Preston, 1996, (c)TriStar Pictures/courtesy Everett Collection
Kelly Preston in the 1996 film "Jerry Maguire." She had a memorable role as the icy fiancée of Tom Cruise's sports agent character. (C)TriStar Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

Preston was an actress and former model who appeared in more than 60 TV shows and movies, most notably "Jerry Maguire" in 1996 and "Twins" in 1988.

Preston and Travolta met shooting the 1989 comedy "The Experts" and were married in 1991. The couple had three children: Jett, who died in 2009, Ella, 20, and Benjamin, 9. Jett died at 16 after having a seizure while on a family vacation in the Bahamas.

EXPERTS, Kelly Preston, John Travolta, 1989, (c) Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection
Preston and Travolta in 1989's "The Experts." They met while shooting the movie.(C)Paramount / Courtesy Everett Collection

Preston had a long acting career, dating back to her on-screen debut in a 1980 episode of "Hawaii Five-O."

She went on to make a long list of guest spots on TV before breaking into film, scoring roles in movies such as the 1983 Stephen King thriller "Christine" and the 1986 adventure film "SpaceCamp." In "Jerry Maguire," she had a small but memorable role as the title character's ruthless fiancée. She later worked with her husband in 2000's "Battlefield Earth."

Jett Travolta Dies At 16
Travolta and Preston with children Jett and Ella in an undated picture. Jett passed away in 2009 at the age of 16.Tim Boyles / Getty Images

In the 2000s, Preston returned to TV, appearing on "Joey," "Fat Actress" and "Medium." Her last movie role was in the 2018 mafia biopic "Gotti," playing Victoria Gotti, wife of mob boss John Gotti, who was portrayed by Travolta.

In a message on Instagram early Monday, Ella Travolta remembered her mother as possessing "a light that never ceases to shine."

"I have never met anyone as courageous, strong, beautiful and loving as you," she wrote.

"You have made life so beautiful and I know you will continue to do so always," she added. "I love you so much mama."