Sam Neill, ‘Jurassic Park’ Actor, Passes Away at 78

“Jurassic Park” star, Sam Neill, died in Australia on Monday aged 78, his family said in a statement.

The statement reads,

“It is with immense sadness that the whanau of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13 July, in Sydney, Australia,” the statement read, using the New Zealand Maori word for family.

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

The statement did not elaborate on the cause of Neill’s death, but said he had been undergoing treatment at St Vincent’s Private Hospital in Sydney.

“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life,” the statement said.

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Neill was “one of the greats”.

“For more than fifty years he took New Zealand stories to the world and his talents helped make our film industry into what it is today — one of our greatest cultural exports,” Luxon said in a statement.

“His work will be watched and loved long after all of us.”

Neill started acting in New Zealand films in the early 1970s before moving into larger roles in Australia.

His breakthrough as a leading man came in 1993 when he played Dr Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg’s Hollywood blockbuster “Jurassic Park”.

In a career spanning dozens of roles across TV and film, he also starred in “Peaky Blinders”, “The Hunt for Red October” and two more instalments of the “Jurassic Park” franchise.

May his soul rest in peace.