“Jurassic Park” star Sam Neill has died in Australia at the age of 78, his family announced on Monday, describing his passing as “sudden and unexpected.”
The acclaimed New Zealand actor had undergone treatment for lymphoma in recent years but had announced earlier this year that he was cancer-free.
“It is with immense sadness that the whānau of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13 July, in Sydney, Australia,” the family said in a statement, using the Māori word for family.
“The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free.”
The family did not disclose the cause of death but said Neill had been receiving treatment at St Vincent’s Private Hospital in Sydney.
“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life,” the statement added.
Tributes pour in
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon paid tribute to Neill, describing him as “one of the greats.”
“For more than 50 years, he took New Zealand stories to the world, and his talents helped make our film industry into what it is today — one of our greatest cultural exports,” Luxon said.
“His work will be watched and loved long after all of us.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Neill occupied “a special place in Australian hearts.”
“Wry and dry, thoughtful and laconic, Sam fought illness with the same dignity, humour and conviction that gave strength to his every performance,” Albanese said.
“He will be much mourned and long remembered.”
From New Zealand to Hollywood
Born in Northern Ireland in 1947, Neill moved with his family to New Zealand’s South Island as a child.
Originally christened Nigel John Dermot Neill, he adopted the name “Sam” because he believed his given name sounded too “effete” for New Zealand.
“I encouraged the nickname because I thought I’d be slightly less likely to be victimised,” he told New Zealand’s Otago Daily Times.
“I clung on to ‘Sam’ with great enthusiasm.”
Neill began his acting career in New Zealand films during the early 1970s before securing larger roles in Australia.
His international breakthrough came in 1993 when he starred as Dr Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster Jurassic Park, a role he reprised in two sequels.
Over a career spanning more than five decades, Neill appeared in dozens of film and television productions, including Peaky Blinders, The Hunt for Red October, The Piano, and Hunt for the Wilderpeople.
Despite his international success, he remained closely connected to New Zealand’s film industry, frequently lending his profile to local productions.
Cancer battle
Neill revealed in his 2023 memoir that he had been diagnosed with stage-three non-Hodgkin lymphoma and feared he was “possibly dying.”
In the book’s opening chapter, written while undergoing chemotherapy, he wrote: “The thing is, I’m crook. Possibly dying. I may have to speed this up.”
Earlier this year, however, he announced that he was cancer-free after undergoing a genetic therapy designed to strengthen his immune system.
“I was at a loss and it looked like I was on the way out, which wasn’t ideal, obviously,” he told Australia’s Channel Seven News.
“I’ve just had a scan, and there is no cancer in my body — that’s an extraordinary thing.”
Away from acting, Neill was also a successful winemaker, operating vineyards in the Central Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island.
AFP
