Sam Neill, ‘Jurassic Park’ star breathes his last at age 78

Sam Neill, famed for his role in Peaky Blinders and Jurassic Park, has died aged 78, his family said in a statement.

The New Zealand-born actor died in Sydney on Monday.

The statement from Neill's family said: “It is with immense sadness that the whānau [extended family] of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney, Australia.”

“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life,” they assured, adding, “the loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free.”

“They 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,” the statement concluded.

Neill was diagnosed with stage three angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2022, which caused him to take a short break from acting, however, Neill had announced he was cancer-free earlier this year.

Neill is perhaps best known for starring in Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park, and has appeared in a host of other much-loved movies and TV series.

His other movie roles include in the Oscar-winning film The Piano, The Horse Whisperer, The Hunter, Wimbledon and Hunt for the Wilderpeople.

On TV, he starred alongside Cillian Murphy in Peaky Blinders and received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for the NBC miniseries Merlin.