10 Incredible Against-All-Odds Hollywood Comebacks

9. John Travolta

Travolta shot to fame in the 1970s with two iconic roles in Saturday Night Fever and Grease, as well as a supporting role in Carrie. The Downfall: After inspiring a nationwide country music craze with Urban Cowboy, Travolta starred in a series of flops. The Saturday Night Fever sequel Staying Alive was compared unfavourably to the original. Two Of A Kind, which reunited him with Grease co-star Olivia Newton John, was slated by the press and made next-to-nothing at the box-office. Barring an underrated performances in the Brian De Palma thriller Blow Out, the '80s were a bit of a washout for Travolta. He also famously turned down lead roles in American Gigolo and An Officer And A Gentleman, both of which went to Richard Gere (and were huge hits). What Brought Him Back: Quentin Tarantino, basically. Although Travolta found success in the Look Who's Talking series, his resurgence as an actor really began with Pulp Fiction. His performance as Vincent Vega was heralded as an amazing return to form and he received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his effect. Tarantino, a huge fan of Travolta's performance in Blow Out, fought to keep Travolta in the film against the studio's wishes. The move paid off. It's hard to imagine anyone else playing Vega, isn't it? Did It Last?: After Pulp Fiction Travolta found himself back on the A-list and flooded with offers. He followed it up with Get Shorty, Broken Arrow and Face/Off. Unfortunately, it was all ruined with Battlefield Earth.