Sam Neill, one of the stars of “Jurassic Park,” died on Monday, July 13 at the age of 78.
His family announced his “sudden and unexpected” passing via Instagram.
“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterized his whole life,” the statement read. It went on to note that Neill remained cancer-free at the time of his death.
Just two months ago, Neill announced he was cancer-free following his battle with a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma.
Neill’s career spanned five decades and was defined by appearances in both blockbusters like the aforementioned “Jurassic Park” and independent films, as well as both Australian and New Zealand cinema.
His filmography is long, but here are 12 movies and shows we recommend checking out on streaming to celebrate the life of a great actor.
Considered one of the best New Zealand films of all time, “Sleeping Dogs” was a critical and commercial success that launched Neill’s career. The movie follows Smith (Neill) as New Zealand plunges into a police state and the government institutes martial law after industrial disputes flare into violence.
Stream “Sleeping Dogs” on: Apple TV (buy for $3.99)
Neill starred alongside Nicole Kidman in “Dead Calm.” The 1989 psychological thriller followed Neill and Kidman, a married couple who rescue a mysterious stranger abandoning a sinking ship.
Kidman called Neill her “friend for life” in a statement, noting that they “met when I was just 18, and he took me under his wing.”
“He was charming, kind, funny, and intelligent,” she said.
Stream “Dead Calm” on: Prime Video (buy or rent), Tubi
“The Hunt for Red October” is the first cinematic portrayal of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. Neill plays Captain Second Rank Vasily Borodin, the second-in-command aboard the Soviet submarine, the Red October.
Stream “The Hunt for Red October” on: Paramount+ (free trial), Peacock (free trial), Tubi
Neill showed off a darker side in “The Piano,” where he played antagonist, the rigid and intense Alisdair Stewart. Stewart forms one point in the film’s tragic love triangle as he is to be married to Ada (Holly Hunter), a woman who hasn’t spoken since the age of six and uses a piano, sign language and her young daughter to communicate for her.
“The Piano” is currently not streaming, but you can buy the Criterion Collection 4K or Blu-ray for 50% off right now.
In what is perhaps the role Neill is best known for, he starred alongside Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum in Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park.” Neill plays paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant, who is invited to the dinosaur theme park on Isla Nublar to deem it safe for humans to visit.
When industrial sabotage leads to a major shutdown of the park’s security precautions and power facilities, a small group, including Grant, Dr. Ellie Sattler (Dern) and Ian Malcolm (Goldblum), struggles to escape the dinosaur-filled island.
“Sam was my beloved lifetime friend… He showed me the depths of loyalty, protectiveness and love always with the driest of wit,” she said.
Her statement concluded, “I will love you forever, Dr. Alan Grant.”
Stream “Jurassic Park” on: Prime Video (buy or rent)
Neill worked with prolific horror director John Carpenter on “In the Mouth of Madness.” He plays John Trent, an insurance investigator visiting a small town while looking into the disappearance of a successful author of horror novels. As the lines between reality and fiction seem to blur, Trent begins to question his sanity.
Stream “In the Mouth of Madness” on: Prime Video (buy or rent), Tubi
Despite a troubled production, “Event Horizon” seamlessly blends sci-fi and horror, and in the years since its release, it has been reassessed and is now considered a cult classic. The movie follows a crew of astronauts in the year 2047 who are sent on a rescue mission after the Event Horizon, a spaceship that went missing seven years earlier, spontaneously reappears in orbit around Neptune.
Neill plays the designer of the Event Horizon, who slowly descends into madness and villainy.
Stream “Event Horizon” on: MGM+ (free trial), Prime Video (buy or rent)
Neill returned to the “Jurassic Park” universe for “Jurassic Park III,” where he briefly reunited with Dern on screen. In it, Dr. Grant is enlisted, with the promise of financial backing for a new study on velociraptors, to help a divorced couple find their missing son on Isla Sorna, where much of the dinosaur research for the Park was conducted.
Stream “Jurassic Park III” on: Prime Video (buy or rent)
Neill starred in Season 1 of Showtime’s “The Tudors” as Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the Archbishop of York. Wolsey was King Henry VIII’s (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) most trusted advisor, but his power and influence over the King leads to unrest among several noble families.
In 2008, Neill said that he “really enjoyed” making “The Tudors”, “with a cast that [he] liked very much and with a story [he] found very compelling.”
Stream “The Tudors” on: Prime Video (free trial)
Neill appeared on the first two seasons of the popular crime drama, which premiered in 2013. He was the first and second series’ primary antagonist, Chester Campbell. Sent in to clean up the city and fight against groups, including the Peaky Blinders gang by Winston Churchill, Campbell resorts to brutal and underhanded tactics.
“Like everyone who knew and worked with Sam, I admired him and adored him in equal measure,” he said.
Stream “Peaky Blinders” on: Netflix
One of Neill’s more recent critically acclaimed roles came in Taika Waititi’s adventure-comedy “Hunt for the Wilderpeople.” The New Zealand film follows Neill’s “Uncle” Hector as he and his foster son become targets of a manhunt after fleeing into the bush.
Stream “Hunt for the Wilderpeople” on: Prime Video (free trial)
Neill revisited Dr. Alan Grant one last time as one of the main characters in “Jurassic World Dominion.” He returned alongside Dern and Goldblum, whose characters reunite to investigate a conspiracy and take a corporation down. Of course, they also encounter some dinosaurs along the way.
Stream “Jurassic World Dominion” on: Netflix, Prime Video (buy or rent)
