‘Jurassic Park’ actor Sam Neill dies of pneumonia, agent says
WELLINGTON, New Zealand –
Actor Sam Neill has died of complications from pneumonia and will later be honored at a private family memorial at his New Zealand farm, his agent told The Associated Press on Thursday.
Neil’s family previously announced that the actor, known for Jurassic Park, The Piano and other films, died on Monday in Sydney.
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His agent, Philip Grenz, said he provided the additional information after speaking with Neal’s family and following news reports “that contain inaccuracies and outright lies,” he said.
“Sam passed away from pneumonia,” Grenz said. “Before getting sick, Sam valiantly fought and beat lymphoma with a new treatment called CAR-T therapy.”
He added that Neil has filmed four projects in a row over the past year that are set to release in the coming months.
“Because Sam was a very private person and hated fuss, his family will honor him with a private family memorial at his farm in New Zealand at a date to be determined,” Grenz said.
In 2023, the New Zealand actor revealed he had been diagnosed with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and in April this year said he was cancer-free. CAR-T therapy is a form of immunotherapy based on human T cells that is used for several types of blood cancer.
His agent’s statement followed days of tributes from film industry colleagues who remembered him as a kind, witty and curious man.
FILE – Actor Sam Neill poses at the premiere of “Hunt for the Wilderpeople” during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, January 22, 2016, in Park City, Utah.
“You are so loved and we will all miss you dearly,” director Taika Waititi, who directed Neil in 2016’s Hunt for the Wilderpeople, one of Neil’s best-loved films in New Zealand, wrote on Instagram on Wednesday.
“Love you and see you soon sweet Nigel,” Waititi wrote, referring to Neil’s real name, which he told interviewers he changed to Sam at school because there were too many Nigels in his class.
“Sam was extremely helpful,” said Steven Spielberg, who directed the first “Jurassic Park” film, in which Neil played paleontologist Alan Grant.
“I loved doing all the Jurassic films with him,” Spielberg said in a statement. “Along with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, we will always have our Jurassic family, and Sam will never be forgotten by us or his many millions of fans around the world.”
Neil was one of a number of actors and directors to achieve international fame following the Australian film boom that began in the late 1970s. He was mourned in New Zealand as a friendly and modest man who avoided celebrities and contributed to community causes and community projects near his home, according to local news outlets.
Neil was also a winemaker and, under his Two Paddocks brand, produced Pinot Noir and Riesling wines at his winery in the Central Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island.
He is survived by four children and eight grandchildren.