The actor had been declared cancer-free just months before his death and died in a Sydney hospital.
Sam Neill was born in Northern Ireland, but grew up and began his career in New Zealand, becoming one of the country's most internationally recognized actors.
He made both big blockbusters and smaller indie films in his career. Some of his best-known titles are "The Hunt for Red October" (1990), "Event Horizon" (1997) and "The Man Who Talked to Horses" (1998).
To a wide international audience, he became best known as paleontologist Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg's "Jurassic Park" (1993), a role he reprised in two of the film series' sequels.
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He has been praised for his ability to switch between drama, thriller, comedy, horror and historical stories.
By contrast, one of the more light-hearted blockbusters he made was the role of Alisdair Stewart in Jane Campion's drama "The Piano" (1993), where Neill played an authoritarian settler in New Zealand who marries the mute pianist Ada McGrath (Holly Hunter).
“Behind the veiled eyes of Neill's taciturn husband lies a vast abyss of fear and sorrow,” wrote legendary film critic Roger Ebert in his review of the film.
Tradition in Sweden
For us Swedes, Sam Neill is perhaps best known for his role as the - initially - evil Templar Brian de Bois-Guilbert in the New Year's classic "Ivanhoe", which has been shown on Swedish television almost every New Year's Day since the 1980s. For New Year 2022, Neill sent a video greeting to the Swedes via SVT :
It's been 40 years and you've seen "Ivanhoe" every New Year's Day. It's truly an honor, I'm proud of you. Will we see it again this year? Yes we will! Will Brian de Bois-Guilbert win this year? Yes he will!
Sam Neill had strong ties to Australia for many years and was praised by the country's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
"Sam Neill was part of so many Australian stories and held a special place in the hearts of many Australians. Dry and witty, thoughtful and laconic, Sam fought his illness with the same dignity, humor and determination that gave him strength for all his roles," he wrote on X.
Sam Neill turned 78.
