John Travolta celebrates Grease‘s 45th anniversary with a throwback video of him and Olivia Newton-John arriving on the red carpet for the premiere back in 1978. Based on the stage musical of the same name, the beloved rom-com followed the high school romance between leather-clad greaser Danny Zuko (Travolta) and the sweet exchange student, Sandy Olsson (Newton-John). Originally setting the record for the highest-grossing musical movie of all time, Grease‘s catchy tunes, relatable depiction of teen life, and lovable characters have kept it alive in pop culture.
In honor of the movie’s 45th anniversary, Travolta took to his Instagram to celebrate Grease with a throwback video from its red carpet premiere.
The video, as seen above, showed just how big a spectacle Grease was at the time, as Travolta and Newton-John arrived on the red carpet amid swarms of screaming fans and paparazzi. There’s a bittersweet component to watching Travolta and Newton-John make their way to the premiere arm-in-arm, as Newton-John passed away last year. She and Travolta boasted a beautiful friendship stemming from their time on Grease, making the throwback both sweet and sad.
Why Didn’t John Travolta And Olivia Newton-John Reprise Their Grease Roles?
The Grease anniversary and Travolta’s throwback are bound to resurface questions about the movie’s legacy, including its sequel. Despite being such a beloved and long-lasting movie, it didn’t go on to spurn a successful franchise, with Grease 2 arriving in 1982, only to be a commercial and critical failure. There were some attempts at Grease 3, but the project ultimately never became a reality, and the movie series ended on a rather sour note with Grease 2.
One of the biggest surprises of the sequel was that neither Travolta nor Newton-John reprised their iconic roles as Danny and Sandy. Grease 2 had seven of the original stars return, so many expected Travolta and Newton-John to appear in some kind of cameo, though the plans failed to come tor fruition. Meanwhile, there were attempts as late as 2003 to make a Grease 3 or a true Grease sequel that would bring back Travolta and Newton-John, with the later even expressing an openness to reprising her role if the story was acceptable.
Despite these failed attempts, Grease did make its way back to the screen for the first time in over 40 years with the prequel series Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. The show’s received mixed-to-positive reviews for its nostalgia and heart, while its music has proven less exciting compared to the original movie. While it’s a bit surprising that Travolta and Newton-John never officially reprised their roles as Danny and Sandy, it’s actually quite fitting that their legacy was preserved and that viewers will always fondly remember them just as they were.
