Is John Travolta’s son the great-grandchild of Elvis? A lawsuit offers details
As far as Hollywood shockers go, this one’s a doozy.
A newly amended lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday alleges that John Travolta used Riley Keough’s eggs to conceive his youngest son, Benjamin, 15.
If the woman’s last name doesn’t sound familiar, take note that Keough comes from rock-music royalty. The “Jay Kelly” actress is the daughter of the late Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis and Priscilla Presley’s only daughter, and actor-musician Danny Keough.
Among the people who dropped this wild bombshell is Central Florida auctioneer Brigitte Kruse, who’s been locked in a legal battle with Priscilla Presley for some time.
Kruse and Elvis memorabilia collector Kevin Fialko got the legal ball rolling first, suing the 80-year-old matriarch in 2023 for breach of contract.
The petitioners claimed they brokered several deals for the famous widow, who responded by countersuing for financial elder abuse. Presley claimed that Kruse et. al. “fraudulently” coerced her into “giving them power of attorney, control over her family and personal trusts and control over her bank accounts.”
Kruse, who runs GWS Auctions out of Orlando, denies Presley’s claims, saying she and others devoted “themselves full-time to assisting, repairing, stabilizing, and improving Presley’s financial situation.”
In court documents obtained by Radar Online, Kruse says Lisa Marie’s ex-husband, musician Michael Lockwood, told her the egg donation — for which Keough was allegedly paid about $15,000, along with a used Jaguar — was Travolta’s idea as Preston was unable to bear kids of her own. The “Twins” actress died from breast cancer in July 12, 2020, at age 57.
Presley’s legal team denies that Keough is the biological mother of Benjamin (who coincidentally shares the name of Lisa Marie’s late son, Benjamin Keough, who died of suicide on the same day as Preston’s death).
“After losing motion after motion in this case ... Brigitte Kruse, Kevin Fialko, and their co-conspirators have demonstrated that there is no bar too low, no ethical line that they are unwilling to cross in an effort to cause further pain to Priscilla Presley and her family,” said her lawyers, Marty Singer and Wayne Harman, in a statement to TMZ.
Additionally: Priscilla Presley made no mention of a secret great-grandchild in her new memoir “Softly, As I Leave You.” But she did reveal a longtime relationship with Travolta who was the one to introduce her to Scientology after Elvis’ death in 1977.
Lisa Marie never spoke of having a secret grandchild nor was there any hint of any egg transaction in her posthumously published memoir “From Here to the Great Unknown.” The Memphis, Tennessee, native did however reveal she met Travolta at the age of 10. She later became a Scientologist, like her mother, and lived in Clearwater, where it’s headquartered, for a time. Both women ended up leaving the church, whose followers also include Tom Cruise.
As far as family resemblance goes, Benjamin Travolta looks like a cross between his famous parents, and shows no sign of musical talents (unlike his sister Ella Bleu). But in a recent Instagram post, the 71-year-old “Saturday Night Fever” star, a part-time resident of Ocala, posted a picture of the teen displaying some impressive skiing skills.
“My son!” the Oscar nominee wrote. “Proud of you, Ben!”
This story was originally published December 18, 2025 at 3:54 PM.
