John Travolta responds to gay rumors

OCALA, Fla., Sept. 17 (UPI) -- John Travolta has addressed rumors he is gay.

The 60-year-old actor discussed the claims in an interview with The Daily Beast. Travolta is involved in a pending lawsuit filed by a supposed former lover, and the star said such allegations are "every celebrity's Achilles heel."

"It's just about people wanting money," he asserted. "That's all. It happens on many levels. Also, I don't care that much about it. Other people may attack it back more than I do, but I let all the media stuff go a long time ago because I can't control it. I think that's why it persists, to some degree."

Travolta and actress Kelly Preston have been married since 1991, and are parents to daughter Ella and son Benjamin. The couple's eldest son, Jett, died of a seizure in 2009, and the tragedy was overshadowed by reports the teenager was found by the actor's supposed gay lover, nanny Jeff Kathrein.

"I found it most offensive with the loss of my son," Travolta said of the rumors. "I felt like that was the lowest I'd ever felt. Sex stuff is always going to be interesting to somebody, but you stay away from family. You really should. With that, I always felt like the media -- not all of the media, but parts of it -- went too low there."

Travolta will appear in Criminal Activities and In a Valley of Violence in 2015.