John Travolta breaks down in tears during emotional tribute to Olivia Newton-John at the Oscars

John Travolta struggled to hold back the tears as he paid tribute to the late Olivia Newton-John at the 2023 Oscars on Sunday night.

During the 95th Academy Awards - where stars wore blue ribbons for a very special reason - John Travolta took to the stage to present the In Memoriam segment of the ceremony and was overcome with emotion when remembering his Grease co-star, Olivia Newton-John.

Referencing one of Olivia's famous songs from Grease, in which she played Sandy, John welled up as he said, "They've touched our hearts, they've made us smile, and became dear friends, who we will always remain hopelessly devoted to."

The actor struggled to get his words out as he finished his sentence but managed to hold it together to welcome Lenny Kravitz to the stage. 

Olivia Newton-John passed away "peacefully" at her Ranch in Southern California, surrounded by family and friends, in August 2022, after a 30-year-long journey with breast cancer. 

And John was one of the first celebrities to pay tribute to Olivia. Captioning a stunning photo of a younger Olivia Newton-John, the 68-year-old gushed about the late entertainer's 'impact' on the world and promised to reunite with her in the future. 

"My dearest Olivia, you made all of our lives so much better," he said. "Your impact was incredible. I love you so much. We will see you down the road and we will all be together again. Yours from the first moment I saw you and forever!
Your Danny, your John!" 

In 2020, Olivia Newton-John opened up about her 'overwhelming' breast cancer experience, urging women to attend their mammogram appointments and announcing the launch of the Olivia Newton-John Foundation. 

John has been praised by fans for showing his vulnerability at The Oscars. One said, "John Travolta was tough to watch. So sweet," while another added, "Damn, John Travolta just did me in with his In Memoriam "Hopelessly Devoted" reference to Olivia Newton John."

A third moved fan commented, "John Travolta making me cry over here."

Another emotional moment at the ceremony came from Lady Gaga, who ditched her red carpet glamour for no makeup and ripped jeans for an emotive rendition of her oscar-nominated track, Hold My Hand, from the Top Gun: Maverick soundtrack.

Before she started singing, Lady Gaga addressed the audience, telling them how personal the song is to her. She said, "It's deeply personal for me and I think that we all need each other, we need a lot of love to walk through this life.

"And we all need a hero sometimes, there's heroes all around us. In unassuming places, but you might find that you can be your own hero, even if you feel broken inside."

The stripped back performance was dedicated to the late 'Top Gun' director Tony Scott and at the end, a photo of him alongside Tom Cruise appeared, with the words: “In memory of Tony Scott.”

This year's Oscars also saw Jamie Lee Curtis win her first ever award, a tradition being broken with the red carpet being a different color for the first time in over 60 years and the annual goody bag being worth a whopping $125k.