John Travolta’s Long-Delayed ‘Gotti’ Is Escaping Movie Jail

There’s nothing quite like a good behind-the-scenes story when it comes to a movie, and John Travolta’s Gotti has a doozy. Originally due to be released in December 2017, the Kevin Connolly-directed feature (yes, E from Entourage; it’s his third film) was yanked from theaters ten days before release amid what appears to have been an argument over how distributor Lionsgate was going to handle the movie. It seems Lionsgate was going to run it in a few theaters, let it peter out, and then release it to home video. So, in a rare move, the producers bought the movie back and went shopping for a new distributor. And they appear to have found one, as Gotti has a new release date.

Gotti follows the life of John Gotti (John Travolta), from killing people for the Gambino crime family, to running the Gambino crime family, to going to jail for all the crimes he committed and leaving his family to pick up the pieces and make reality shows. Also, there’s an assassination committed by men in funny hats. Who doesn’t love a funny hat

Hats aside, Gotti’s story is fascinating, as he rose to power at the exact moment the mob, which had long been ignored and even outright denied to exist, began to crumble as journalists, lawyers, and police took it apart bit by bit. Depending on who you ask, Gotti’s ruthlessness and flamboyance was the beginning of the end for the Gambinos and organized crime as a broader entity, and if there’s any actor who can nail an outsize personality, it’s Travolta. We’ll get a chance to see for ourselves June 15th.