Sam Neill was still attending film events, celebrating new work and planning for the future in the weeks before his sudden death at 78.
The Jurassic Park actor appeared at the Sydney Film Festival in June and remained publicly engaged with acting, music and his New Zealand vineyard. An unnamed source told the Daily Mail that Neill had felt healthier than he had in months and was reading scripts after becoming cancer-free.
Neill’s family announced that he died July 13 in Sydney while surrounded by relatives. They described the loss as “sudden and unexpected,” emphasized that he remained cancer-free and thanked the staff at St Vincent’s Private Hospital without disclosing a cause of death.
His final screen work includes the Australian comedy The Fox, the romantic comedy The Last Resort and the MonsterVerse sequel Godzilla x Kong: Supernova.
Neill Returned to the Sydney Film Festival in June
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Neill attended a June 4 Sydney Film Festival screening of The Fox, an absurdist Australian comedy in which he voiced a magpie opposite Olivia Colman’s talking fox.
Jai Courtney and Emily Browning lead the film, directed by Danger 5 creator Dario Russo. The Sydney Opera House listing for the festival event said the screening included a live Q&A with Russo, Neill and The Worm director Tom Noakes.
During a festival interview, Neill said he continued acting because he loved the work. He appeared with a cane, but explained that he was awaiting a hip replacement, separating the mobility issue from the rare blood cancer he had recently announced was no longer detectable.
One week later, Neill attended the ARIA Hall of Fame Awards at Carriageworks in Sydney. His June 11 Instagram post included photographs with Kate Ceberano, Vika and Linda Bull, Jenny Morris and former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
Neill shared another career update June 21 after receiving a Silver Logie nomination for the third season of the Australian legal drama The Twelve. He thanked the show’s cast and crew and congratulated fellow nominees including Jacob Elordi and Hunter Page-Lochard.
He Had Just Announced That He Was Cancer-Free
Neill revealed in 2023 that he had been diagnosed with stage-three angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma the previous year. Chemotherapy initially controlled the rare blood cancer but eventually stopped working, leading him to enter an Australian clinical trial involving CAR T-cell therapy.
In an April interview with Australia’s 7News, Neill said a new scan showed no cancer in his body. He subsequently used his experience to advocate for broader access to CAR T-cell treatment in Australia and New Zealand.
His final Guardian interview showed him still making plans beyond acting. Neill said his Two Paddocks winery had removed two acres of underperforming pinot noir vines and replaced them with chardonnay.
“I want to live long enough to pour my first chardonnay,” he said of the wine expected from the new vines.
Neill also discussed eating produce grown on his farm after five years of treatments had frequently left him unable to eat for several days at a time.
Two More Sam Neill Films Are Scheduled for 2027
Neill completed a role in The Last Resort, a romantic comedy starring Daisy Ridley and Alden Ehrenreich. Donald Petrie directed the Philippines-set film from a screenplay by Legally Blonde writer Karen McCullah.
Vertical secured U.S. rights to the completed film and plans to release it theatrically in 2027. The cast also includes Tia Carrere, Jo Koy, Beck Bennett and Vondie Curtis-Hall.
Neill will also appear in Godzilla x Kong: Supernova, directed by Grant Sputore. The MonsterVerse sequel stars Dan Stevens, Kaitlyn Dever, Jack O’Connell, Delroy Lindo, Alycia Debnam-Carey and Matthew Modine.
Warner Bros. and Legendary have scheduled Godzilla x Kong: Supernova for March 26, 2027.