Sam Neill, the versatile actor known for Jurassic Park and The Piano, has died. He was 78.
The news was shared on the star’s media page, which described his passing as “sudden and unexpected”. No cause of death was listed, but the statement added that he “remained cancer free” when he died, following a diagnosis of angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma — a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma — in 2023. Neill had announced that he was cancer-free in April, after five years of undergoing treatment for blood cancer.
“It is with immense sadness that the whānau of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney, Australia. Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life,” reads the post. “The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free. They would like to express their deepest gratitude to the staff at St Vincent’s Private hospital for their incredible care.
“More details will be shared later, but for now, on behalf of the family, we ask that you respect their privacy as they navigate this immeasurable loss.”
The New Zealand star was among a series of actors and directors who gained international fame after an explosion of Australian films in the 1970s, joining the likes of Paul Hogan, Mel Gibson, Geoffrey Rush, Russell Crowe, Jane Campion, Peter Weir and Gillian Armstrong. Alongside his respective roles as palaeontologist Alan Grant and New Zealand settler Alisdair Stewart in Jurassic Park and The Piano, Neill also starred in 1977’s Sleeping Dogs, 1979’s Brilliant Career, Omen III (1981), Phillip Noyce’s Dead Calm, and more, totalling up to over 150 credits over five decades.
In 2016, he starred in Taika Waititi’s breakout hit Hunt for the Wilderpeople, leading to small cameos in Thor: Ragnarok and its 2022 sequel Love and Thunder. Neill reprised his role in Jurassic World Dominion in that same year and will have a posthumous credit in the upcoming Godzilla X Kong: Supernova.
Rest in peace, good sir.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
