# Sam Neill has died **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 13, 2026, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635 "2026-07-13T06:00:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/1 "2026-07-13T06:00:36Z")
> Actor Sam Neill, who starred in My Brilliant Career and Jurassic Park, has died aged 78. > > A post made to his social media account on Monday afternoon said he had died in Sydney “surrounded by his family”. > > “The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free,” the statement, posted to Instagram, said. > **[Breaking: Actor Sam Neill dies](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-07-13/sam-neill-dies-jurassic-park-actor/103425588?utm_source=abc_news_app&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_app&utm_content=link)** > > Actor New Zealand Sam Neill, who starred in My Brilliant Career and Jurassic Park, has died aged 78. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/2 "2026-07-13T06:06:41Z")
Well, shit. I really liked him as an actor. _In the Mouth of Madness_ was such a great movie. Such an underrated performance in that. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/3 "2026-07-13T06:12:00Z")
A personal favorite, glad to see others enjoy it as well. If you like the sort of twisty, madness of unreality that evokes the best of the Mythos. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/4 "2026-07-13T06:12:41Z")
He also starred in more movies and TV shows than I could reasonably list, also including the excellent and under-appreciated Australian production _Dead Calm_, alongside an early film appearance by Nicole Kidman. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/5 "2026-07-13T06:15:13Z")
I most remember his appearances in _Bicentennial Man_ and _Event Horizon._ DH right away also recalled _Hunt for Red October._ ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/6 "2026-07-13T06:16:44Z")
Anyone who likes Sam, hell even anyone who doesn’t know his work, should watch _The Dish._ A charming little film about how a small town in Australia played an important role in the 1969 moon landing. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/7 "2026-07-13T06:16:55Z")
He had a starring role as “Sir” Martin in _Bicentennial Man_, Andrew’s initial owner. I enjoyed him in that role. Sir: I wanted to tell you, I was wrong. Andrew: You’re _never_ wrong, sir. Sir: Then don’t contradict me. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/8 "2026-07-13T06:46:49Z")
Great movie. He was also great in another ‘small’ film recently, _Hunt for the Wilderpeople_, about a manhunt for a man and boy in the New Zealand wilderness. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/9 "2026-07-13T06:59:04Z")
Yes, a good one! Very Australian but also relatable. ---
**Author:** ![themapleleaf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/themapleleaf/32/14349_2.png) [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/10 "2026-07-13T07:08:14Z")
I too quite liked him as an actor. > [@iamatractorboy](#): > > Anyone who likes Sam, hell even anyone who doesn’t know his work, should watch _The Dish._ A charming little film about how a small town in Australia played an important role in the 1969 moon landing. Thanks for the tip, will check it out. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/11 "2026-07-13T07:57:27Z")
He was one of those actors that, if I saw that he was in something but knew nothing about it, I would assume that it was worth watching. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/12 "2026-07-13T08:32:53Z")
And, of course, he portrayed Anthony Hopkins’s Odin in the play-within-a-play in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s _Thor:Ragnarok_. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/13 "2026-07-13T08:44:40Z")
This is sad. He’s been on my “worth watching” list since I first became aware of him in _Reilly, Ace of Spies_. Which I’ve just realised was in 1983, so 43 years of Sam Neill. Would have liked more. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/14 "2026-07-13T09:24:54Z")
There was a nice documentary series in Australia called _Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery_, where Julia would take celebrities back to their childhood homes and talk about their early life and family and their relationship to their home towns. The Sam Neill episode was fascinating. I can’t find it online anywhere, it’s locked in the archives I guess, but if you can track it down somewhere, I recommend it. ---
**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/15 "2026-07-13T09:46:00Z")
What a loss- he was such a great presence on film. I also really enjoyed his farming tiktoks. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/16 "2026-07-13T10:39:51Z")
I’m not exactly recommending _Possession_, but I do think I have to rewatch it. He was terrific in one of his younger roles. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/17 "2026-07-13T10:42:52Z")
I saw this in an almost empty theater. A very weird film. But I liked him in it, as in everything I saw him in. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/18 "2026-07-13T11:23:13Z")
To me. he’ll always be _ **Reilly, Ace of Spies** _, which more than makes up for the stupid miniseries _ **Ameяika.** _ ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/19 "2026-07-13T12:10:33Z")
“I would have liked to have seen Montana.” ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2026, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635/20 "2026-07-13T12:34:14Z")
I remember seeing him in a TV movie of **Ivanhoe** when I was a kid, alongside Anthony Andrews. Wouldn’t have guessed he’d be running from dinosaurs one day. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-neill-has-died/1031635.md?page=2)