Jurassic Park star Sam Neill has died at the age of 78.
The New Zealand actor’s family announced his passing in a statement on his Instagram page, saying that he died surrounded by his loved ones.
“It is with immense sadness that the whānau of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney Australia,” the statement said, using the Māori word for extended family.
“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life.
“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.”
Neill, who appeared in more than 50 films during his career, first disclosed a blood cancer diagnosis in his 2023 memoir, Did I Ever Tell You This? At the time, he was being treated for Stage 3 angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma.
“The thing is, I’m crook. Possibly dying. I may have to speed this up,” he wrote in his book.
He revealed he had been diagnosed with the rare blood cancer in early 2022. He entered remission later that year after responding to an anti-cancer drug, but continued receiving regular infusion treatments. In April, he announced he was cancer-free.
“I’m not afraid to die, but it would annoy me,” he told The Guardian.
Just months ago, Neill was advocating for a new cancer therapy after announcing his cancer-free status. Neill told 7 News Australia that he had been living with a “particular type of lymphoma for about five years and I was on chemotherapy... And pretty miserable business, but it was keeping me alive.”
A cause of death has not been released.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute to Neil as “wry and dry, thoughtful and laconic”.
“Sam Neill starred in so many beloved Australian stories and he earned a special place in Australian hearts,” he said on X.
Neill, who was born in Northern Ireland to an English mother and a Kiwi father, got his acting break in 1977 with the low-budget New Zealand film Sleeping Dogs. This led to bigger roles in Australia and eventually Hollywood.
International audiences first took note when he appeared in the Outback period drama My Brilliant Career in 1979, part of a host of actors who used Aussie films to achieve success in the U.S. Others included Mel Gibson and Russell Crowe.
His first big international role came just a couple of years later in 1981’s Omen III: The Final Conflict. He played Damien Thorn, son of the devil.
He narrowly missed becoming the next James Bond after screen-testing for the role in the mid-1980s, but later said his heart wasn’t in it and that he felt awkward throughout the daylong audition.
Instead, he went on to global stardom as paleontologist Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 blockbuster Jurassic Park.
In 2022, he accepted a knighthood for his outstanding contributions to film after spending years declining the honor.
After his diagnosis, the screen legend said he would take a short break from acting. His last film was The Fox, a 2025 Australian black comedy fantasy written and directed by Dario Russo. Two movies he worked on, Godzilla x Kong: Supernova and The Last Resort, are in post-production and slated for a posthumous release.
Neill, who was married twice, is survived by his two sons and two daughters.
