Actor Kelly Preston died Sunday after a long battle with cancer, her family announced. She was 57.
“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,” Preston’s husband, actor John Travolta, wrote on Instagram. “She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many.”
Born Kelly Kamalelehua Smith in Honolulu, she changed her name to Kelly Preston before landing her first film role in the 1985 romantic comedy “Mischief,” Reuters reported. Over the next three decades, Preston appeared in dozens of films and television shows, notably “Jerry Maguire,” “Twins” and “For Love of the Game.” She met Travolta in 1987 and they married in Paris four years later.
The couple had three children together. Their son, Jett, died in 2009 at the age of 16.
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Kelly Preston and John Travolta attend the premiere of "Gotti" at the SVA Theatre on Thursday, June 14, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP) (Photo: Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Preston and Travolta starred on screen in “Battlefield Earth” (2000). Most recently, the couple played husband and wife John and Victoria Gotti in “Gotti,” the 2018 film about the mob boss.
Tributes to the actress began pouring in late Sunday:
Shocked by this sad news. Kelly was such a bright loving soul, a talented actress, and a loving mom and wife. My heart breaks for her family who have already known such sadness and grief. Join me in sending them love and strength. #RIP#KellyPrestonhttps://t.co/DndcfOtlOn
I’m in absolute shock. What a beautiful and amazing actress and person. So sad to hear of her passing at such a young age. My heart goes out to John Travolta and the entire family. What a loss. 🙏 RIP #KellyPrestonhttps://t.co/yRqOmI3CjW
Jerry Maguire would not have been the movie it was without Kelly Preston making that small role have major impact, and I love her so much in What a Girl Wants. She’s gone far too soon. pic.twitter.com/9SvwM0Hblj
I was lucky enough to work with her on one of my very first films, “For Love of The Game.” We were shooting on cold days in Colorado, but she couldn’t have been warmer or kinder to a young, nervous actor trying to make good. I’ll never forget that. Thank you Kelly. #RestInPeace🙏🏼 https://t.co/szGCXxAxyI
Kelly Preston was enormously kind and unbelievably lovely. Can’t believe this. My thoughts are with her sweet Ella and the rest of her incredible family. RIP 🤍🤍🤍
Travolta said his family would seek privacy in the coming months, but that he would “feel your outpouring of love” during that time.
“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,” he said. “But please know that I will feel your outpouring of love in the weeks and months ahead as we heal.”
Preston is survived by her husband and two children, Ella, 20, and Benjamin, 9.
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
