USA: John Travolta and Miley Cyrus at a premiere for new animated feature film "Bolt"

Record ID: 218690

  • Title: USA: John Travolta and Miley Cyrus at a premiere for new animated feature film "Bolt"
  • Date: 19th November 2008
  • Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (NOVEMBER 17, 2008) (REUTERS) WIDE SHOT OF EL CAPITAN THEATER AND PUSH TO MARQUEE. ACTOR JOHN TRAVOLTA WALKING AND GREETING FANS (*** FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY ***) ACTOR JOHN TRAVOLTA AND ACTRESS-SINGER MILEY CYRUS POSING FOR PHOTOS. MR. T TALKING TO THE PRESS. BILLY RAY CYRUS TALKING TO THE PRESS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR JOHN TRAVOLTA ON HOW HE CHOOSES FILM PROJECTS, SAYING: "Well, can you do something with it, like can you contribute something different and better, than someone else could? Is it a good project? Are the people involved great? And is the studio going to make it a classic, you know. In this case 'Bolt,' you know, I think they pulled it off." ACTRESS-SINGER MILEY CYRUS POSING FOR PHOTOS WITH YOUNG FANS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR-SINGER BILLY RAY CYRUS ON WHEN HIS DAUGHTER MILEY CYRUS BEGAN TO SHOW SIGNS THAT SHE WOULD FOLLOW IN HIS FOOTSTEPS AND BECOME AN ENTERTAINER, SAYING: "It was early on, you know, like two years old. It was obvious, you know. She loved to come out on the stage, get ahold of that microphone and sing 'Hound Dog' by Elvis Presley. And it's so appropriate that she's, you know, doing 'Bolt,' you know. Because she loves dogs, she loves animals. And it's, it's great. It's a perfect fit." VOICE TALENT MARK WALTON WALKING THE RED CARPET. BOLT, MITTENS AND RHINO FILM CHARACTERS WALKING THE RED CARPET, (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS MILEY CYRUS ON WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO HER WHEN SHE CHOOSES A FILM ROLE, SAYING: "Just like the quality of it, and the things that they find important, and what the message is. Everything has to have a message. I just feel like there's so many movies out there that you don't take away anything from, and I really want you to take home like a good feeling." CUTAWAY OF STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS. MOVIE POSTER PULL-OUT TO JOHN TRAVOLTA TALKING TO PRESS. ACTOR MALCOLM MCDOWELL TALKING TO THE PRESS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR JOHN TRAVOLTA ON HOW HE FEELS ABOUT SINGING IN FILMS, SAYING: "Oh my God, I love singing, again. It was fun. But I like being invited to sing, you know. And when Dick, Dick asked me to sing with Miley, and Miley wrote this incredible song, I felt, you know, invited to do it. So it was a lot much-- much more fun."
  • Embargoed: 4th December 2008 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Reuters ID: LVA4JYZXNVONR7GB8F3JJP4TQFOF
  • Story Text: John Travolta and Miley Cyrus walked the red carpet Monday (November 17) in support of their new film "Bolt."
    Travolta and Cyrus loaned both their speaking voices and vocals to the lead characters in the latest Disney 3-D animation movie. Travolta plays a dog who believes he possesses superhero powers, and Cyrus portrays his owner Penny.
    The canine adventure begins when Bolt is accidentally shipped to the Big Apple and must find his way back home to Hollywood. Along the way he meets a cat, Mittens, and a hamster, Rhino, who become his trusted traveling companions.
    When asked how he chooses film projects, Travolta told Reuters he had a check list.

    "Well, can you do something with it," shared Travolta.
    "Like can you contribute something different and better, than someone else could? Is it a good project? Are the people involved great? And is the studio going to make it a classic, you know. In this case 'Bolt,' you know, I think they pulled it off."
    Travolta, 54, has been making movies for more than three decades, and is best known for playing the leads in films such as "Saturday Night Fever," "Grease," and "Pulp Fiction."
    His young co-star, Cyrus, is the star of the hit television series "Hannah Montana" (on the Disney Channel), and a recording artist.
    The sitcom also features Cyrus' father Billy Ray, a former country star-turned-actor, who talked about the age his daughter first started showing signs that she was going to become an entertainer.

    "It was early on, you know, like two years old," recalled the elder Cyrus. "It was obvious, you know. She loved to come out on the stage, get ahold of that microphone and sing 'Hound Dog' by Elvis Presley. And it's so appropriate that she's, you know, doing 'Bolt,' you know. Because she loves dogs, she loves animals. And it's, it's great. It's a perfect fit."
    Meanwhile, the 15-year-old talked about she looks for when considering a particular big screen role.

    "Just like the quality of it, and the things that they find important, and what the message is," said Cyrus. "Everything has to have a message. I just feel like there's so many movies out there that you don't take away anything from, and I really want you to take home like a good feeling."
    Cyrus penned the theme song for "Bolt" called "I Thought I Lost You," which she and Travolta sang together.
    Travolta said being asked to take part in the music for the film was a thrill.

    "Oh my God, I love singing, again," beamed Travolta.
    "It was fun. But I like being invited to sing, you know. And when Dick, Dick asked me to sing with Miley, and Miley wrote this incredible song, I felt, you know, invited to do it. So it was a lot much-- much more fun."
    British actor Malcolm McDowell noted that he enjoyed himself enormously while playing the cat-loving criminal mastermind, Dr. Calico. He also confided that playing a voice character is not as much work as his on-screen roles.

    "You know, it's so much easier, because you don't have to learn it," explained McDowell. "You can read it. And it was such a fun character to do, you know. I mean, he's such a heavy, it's ridiculous really.
    But it's kind of fun to lick your-- it's kind of playing an old villain, and you're doing kind of this, you know."
    New York-based actress Susie Essman, who voiced the part of Mittens, an abandoned alley cat who trusts nobody, told Reuters she feels audiences everywhere will enjoy the film because the themes are universally appealing.

    "Because it's about friendship, and it's about loyalty, and, my character especially," smiled Essman. "It's about redemption, you know. And it's about growing and changing and trust, and learning from each other, and trusting your instincts. And all those good things that you want your children to know."
    Disney animator Mark Walton, who in a stroke of good fortune ended up getting cast as the television-loving hamster Rhino, after the studio decided his scratch voice track sounded better than any talent they auditioned, talked about how it felt to suddenly be on the other side of the camera.

    "You get a lot more attention on this end," laughed Walton.
    "You know. I mean, you put a little bit of work in for a little bit of time, and everybody wants to talk to you as if you did all the work. I guess there is some, some amount of work in it. And of course the animators need to work with the voice track that you laid down, but so many talented people that did so much work, getting-- just before I could even record the voice, you know. Writing the dialogue, thinking of the character. It's exciting. I am going to enjoy it while I can."

    "Bolt" opens across North America on Friday, November
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