Jurassic Park & Peaky Blinders Actor Sam Neill Passes Away

SYDNEY, AUS — Jurassic Park actor Sam Neill has passed away at the age of 78.

This morning, it was announced on the actor's Instagram that Sam Neill, probably most well-known for his performance at Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park, passed away. 

The post reads:

It is with immense sadness that the whanau of Sam Neill shares the news of his passing on Monday, 13th July 2026, in Sydney, Australia. Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterized his whole life.

The loss was sudden and unexpected, but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer-free. The family 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.

Niell was born on September 14, 1947, in Ireland before moving to New Zealand, where he attended grade school and college. He broke out in the New Zealand film Sleeping Dogs, then starred in many well-known movies like The Hunt for Red October, Jurassic Park, Bicentennial Man, Event Horizon, and in television series like The Tudors and Peaky Blinders. 

Neill will have roles in Godzilla x Kong: Supernova and The Last Resort.

Also, Neill was nominated for several awards and won Best Supporting Actor from Film Club’s The Lost Weekend Awards and Rialto Channel New Zealand Film Awards for his role as Uncle Hec in Hunt for the Wilderpeople, among others.

In March 2022, Neill was diagnosed with Stage 3 angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a blood cancer, but was cancer-free at the time of his death.