Sam Neill, the Kiwi actor who cemented his place in Hollywood history playing Dr. Alan Grant in the Jurassic Park franchise, died Monday. He was 78.
In a film, television and theater career spanning six decades, Neill played several characters outside of Dr. Grant, for which he is most widely known for. After a rich career in New Zealand and Australia, including lead roles in antipodeaon cinema classics such as Sleeping Dogs (1977) and My Brilliant Career (1979), Neill became an international talent on the rise in Andrzej Żuławski’s cult film Possession (1981). The 1980s and 1990s saw Neill cement his place among the top male actors, starring in Philip Noyce’s Dead Calm (1989), John McTiernan’s The Hunt for Red October (1990), Jane Campion’s The Piano (1993), John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness (1995) and Paul Anderson’s Event Horizon (1997). Though his output slowed in his later years, Neill still gave a memorable turn in Taika Waititi’s 2016 comedy classic Hunt for the Wilderpeople.
Though more closely associated with film, Neill also made a significant impact on television, starring in enduring shows like Reilly, Ace of Spies, the fantasy series Merlin, The Tudors, Alcatraz, and a memorable role in Peaky Blinders and most recently Netflix’s Untamed.
