John Travolta is an actor who feels like he danced his way into stardom and never left. But really, he's been acting his biutt off fr decades, inventing and then reinventing his career in the limelight.

And that's afforded him the opportunity to take on no interesting roles.

From his early days as a disco king to his resurgence as a cool, calculating hitman, Travolta has proven his versatility and enduring star power.

Here's a look at his top 10 films.

Let's dive in.

1. Pulp Fiction (1994)

  • Director: Quentin Tarantino
  • Writer: Quentin Tarantino (story by Quentin Tarantino & Roger Avary)
  • Cast: John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis
  • Plot: The lives of two hitmen, a gangster's wife, a boxer, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.
This was Travolta's second wind. He came back to thunderous applause in this Tarantino movie, and it's probably his best of all time. His performance is subtle and hilarious, and showcases his range.

2. Blow Out (1981)

  • Director: Brian De Palma
  • Writer: Brian De Palma
  • Cast: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow
  • Plot: A sound engineer accidentally records evidence of a political assassination and becomes entangled in a conspiracy.
An all-time good movie, Travolta just cooks here asa sound designer in over his head. Those final images where he cradles a hooeker in his arms are like the epitome of America.

3. Saturday Night Fever (1977)

  • Director: John Badham
  • Writer: Norman Wexler (screenplay), Nik Cohn (story "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night")
  • Cast: John Travolta, Karen Gorney, Barry Miller
  • Plot: A Brooklyn youth with a dead-end job and a passion for disco dancing finds his only escape in the local discotheque.
This was such a landmark movie for the time. It defined the disco era and brought young people to the theaters. Travolta was like a god in it, and we were there on his journey.

4. Grease (1978)

  • Director: Randal Kleiser
  • Writer: Bronte Woodard (screenplay), Allan Carr (adaptation), Jim Jacobs & Warren Casey (original musical)
  • Cast: John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing
  • Plot: Good girl Sandy Olsson and greaser Danny Zuko fall in love over the summer, but can they make their relationship work when they unexpectedly end up at the same high school?
I love this movie so much, and it's made perfect by Travolta. He's doing the 50s, and his voice is fun. He was the perfect, charming leading man.

5. Face/Off (1997)

  • Director: John Woo
  • Writer: Mike Werb & Michael Colleary
  • Cast: John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Joan Allen
  • Plot: An FBI agent undergoes a face transplant to assume the identity of a notorious terrorist, only to have the terrorist steal his face in return.
Travolta being a good action star wasn't on my bingo card, but he's so fun in this movie. He is doing a Cage impersonation the whole time, and it feels like it unlocked something so fun inside him.

6. Get Shorty (1995)

  • Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
  • Writer: Scott Frank (screenplay), Elmore Leonard (novel)
  • Cast: John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo, Danny DeVito
  • Plot: A Miami mobster attempts to break into the movie business by charming a B-movie producer and pitching his own idea for a film.
I'm a sucker for movies about Hollywood, and this is one of the best. It shows how the mafia and studios are actually quite similar. And the work here is so funny and has legitimate thrills.

7. Primary Colors (1998)

  • Director: Mike Nichols
  • Writer: Elaine May (based on the novel by Joe Klein)
  • Cast: John Travolta, Emma Thompson, Kathy Bates, Billy Bob Thornton
  • Plot: A fictionalized look at Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign, following a charismatic Southern governor whose path to the White House is threatened by past scandals.
Travolta playing a version of Bill Clinton on the campaign trail was legendary. It was exciting to see him use his charisma to play a creepy politician and to woo the American public.

8. Hairspray (2007)

  • Director: Adam Shankman
  • Writer: Leslie Dixon (screenplay), John Waters (original film), Mark O'Donnell & Thomas Meehan (book for musical)
  • Cast: John Travolta, Nikki Blonsky, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken
  • Plot: In 1960s Baltimore, a plump teenager with big hair and an even bigger heart dreams of dancing on a local TV show and integrating the program.
The thing about Travolta is that he is fearless. He will take any role if he can see himself in it, even if he's in drag. I loved him in this musical and hope he does more things like it now.

9. Urban Cowboy (1980)

  • Director: James Bridges
  • Writer: James Bridges & Aaron Latham
  • Cast: John Travolta, Debra Winger, Scott Glenn
  • Plot: A young man moves to Houston and finds love and trouble at the city's largest honky-tonk bar.
There are so many roles Travolta does where he disappears into a new world or landscape. This one is underrated, and it features him coming out of his shell and excelling in a dramatic role where he gets to be a little over the top.

10. Broken Arrow (1996)

  • Director: John Woo
  • Writer: Graham Yost
  • Cast: John Travolta, Christian Slater, Samantha Mathis
  • Plot: A renegade pilot attempts to steal two nuclear warheads, leading to a desperate pursuit in the desert.
As I said, I love Travolta in action mode. This movie is kind of dumb fun, but it feels like everyone knows it's supposed to be like that, so they embrace it. And he's a great villain.

Summing It All Up 

Travolta is one of those actors who I think make any project kind of fun. You root for him, against him, and his personality only makes the roles better. He's had a long and storied career, and I can't wait to see what he does next.

Let me know what you think in the comments.

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