Everything we know about claims Riley Keough is biological mother of John Travolta’s son
If you've been online over the past week or so, chances are, you'll have seen countless headlines centring around Riley Keough and John Travolta.
In case you're not caught up in the latest pop culture chatter, a bombshell claim was made in a lawsuit claiming that Keough, 36, is the biological mother of one of Travolta's three kids.
Now, the 71-year-old Grease actor has had three children with his late wife, actress Kelly Preston: Jett, Ella Bleu (born 2000), and Benjamin (born 2010). Jett tragically passed away in 2009 at age 16.
Keough, on the other hand, has two children with her husband, Ben Smith-Petersen: a daughter named Tupelo, who was born in 2022, and a second baby, born earlier this year in 2025.
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She's now found herself at the centre of a bizarre claim as court documents obtained by PEOPLE Magazine allege that Keough donated her eggs to Travolta and Preston, who used them to welcome their son, Benjamin.
But what are all the ins and outs of this ever-developing story?
Who is Riley Keough?
Aside from being a talented actress, famous for starring in American Honey, Daisy Jones and The Six, Mad Max: Fury Road, and The Lodge, Keough is also the granddaughter of none other than Elvis Presley, who died aged 42 in 1977.
Her grandmother is Priscilla Presley, and her mum is the late singer and Elvis's only child, Lisa Marie Presley, who died at 54 in 2023.
The bombshell claim
The bombshell parentage claim was made in a lawsuit filed by Priscilla's former business partners, Brigitte Kruse and Kevin Fialko.
What started as a $50 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against Priscilla's son, Navarone Garibaldi Garcia, has now been amended to include bizarre allegations against other members of the Presley family.
In a 16 December filing, Kruse claimed that Michael Lockwood, the ex-husband of Keough's mother, Lisa Marie, was the one who told her the shocking allegation. She alleged that he told her Travolta and Preston had supposedly used Lisa Marie’s eggs to get pregnant, and the couple later approached her in 2010 about obtaining new eggs, US Weekly reports.
However, they reportedly didn't want 'eggs with heroin' so received Keough's instead, in exchange for 'an old Jaguar car and up to $20,000'.
What does the complaint actually say?
The complaint states: "Michael Lockwood, Lisa Marie’s ex-husband, and the father of Harper and Finley Lockwood, approached Plaintiff Kruse, telling her that John Travolta’s wife, Kelly Preston, had been unable to bear her own children, and Travolta and Presley previously used Lisa Marie’s eggs to get pregnant."
It continued: "Lockwood claimed that Travolta said he no longer wanted to use Lisa Marie’s eggs because they did not want 'eggs with heroin' on them and they orchestrated a deal, where Riley Keough gave her eggs to Travolta, so that Kelly could give birth to their son, Ben Travolta."
When approached by The Daily Mail for comment, Lockwood denied any knowledge of the allegations attributed to him, telling the publication: "That just sounds crazy. I have not heard anything about it."
Priscilla Presley's statement
Priscilla Presley, 80, has since issued a statement via her lawyer, shutting down the wild claims about her granddaughter.
Her team told TMZ: "After losing motion after motion in this case, and unsuccessfully seeking to have Presley’s counsel of record, Marty Singer, disqualified from representing her in this matter, Brigitte Kruse, Kevin Fialko, and their co-conspirators have demonstrated that there is no bar too low, no ethical line that they are unwilling to cross in an effort to cause further pain to Priscilla Presley and her family."
It continued: "In a completely improper effort to exert undue pressure on Presley to retract her legitimate, truthful claims, Kruse and her co-conspirators have also sued Presley’s son, cousin, and assistant.
"These recent outrageous allegations have absolutely nothing to do with the claims in this case. The conduct of Kruse, Fialko, and their new lawyers (they are on their fourth set of attorneys) is shameful, and it absolutely will be addressed in court."
Riley Keough's statement
Meanwhile, Keough also shared a joint statement with her grandmother, Priscilla, slamming the claims as 'deeply hurtful'.
A representative for the family told PEOPLE: "We are aware of the latest allegations from Brigitte Kruse. These claims are not only untrue but also deeply hurtful.
"Our family is, and always has been, united in love and respect for one another. Our shared priority remains honouring Lisa Marie’s memory and protecting Elvis’ legacy with dignity. We will not allow outside voices to divide us or to diminish the strength of our bond as a family."
The response
Kruse and Fialko's legal representative, Jordan Matthews of Holtz Matthews LLP, also shared a statement defending their complaint, stating: "Brigitte Kruse and Kevin Fialko are heartbroken that they have been forced to file their most recent amended complaint.
"They have been accused of horrific acts that are not supported by any evidence whatsoever. These accusations are especially painful given the enormous amount of work they performed to keep the Presley family together during an extremely difficult and divisive period of time."
It added that all family disputes were resolved following Lisa Marie's death, claiming 'every matter was settled, all parties were paid, and closure was achieved'.
The lawyer added: "This amended complaint is about revealing the truth, correcting the record, and providing evidence of the work that was done in good faith.
"Ms Kruse and Mr Fialko remain confident that the truth will prevail."
Tyla has reached out to representatives for Priscilla Presley, Riley Keough and John Travolta for comment.
Rhiannon Ingle