Sam Neill’s cause of death has been revealed, just days after the Jurassic Park star’s shock death.
According to his longtime representative, the New Zealand actor, aged 78, died from pneumonia.
In a statement, his representative Philip Grenz said: “As Sam was an intensely private man who loathed a fuss, his family will honour him with a private family memorial at his farm in New Zealand at a still-undetermined later date.
“I’d like to thank those who were truly close to Sam for considering his privacy with the respect he earned and his loved ones need and deserve during this immeasurably difficult time.”
Mr Grenz also announced in the statement, shared to Entertainment Weekly, the actor had filmed four roles “back-to-back during the past year” before his passing, which will be released within the coming months.
Those roles include The Last Resort, a romantic comedy co-starring Daisy Ridley and Alden Ehrenreich.
He will also posthumously appear in Godzilla x Kong: Supernova, the latest in the “Monsterverse” series of films.
Mr Grenz added: “For those who wish to honor Sam’s memory, in lieu of flowers his whanau (family) ask that donations be made to one of the causes he cared about most deeply.”
Sam Neill’s representative said he filmed four roles ‘back-to-back’ before his passing
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GETTYCauses named include New Zealand-based charities such as the Dunstan Hospital Foundation, The Snowdome Foundation, or any “NZ charity or fund that supports the sustainability, protection and preservation of New Zealand’s wildlife, native bush and land, such as the NZ Nature Fund and Sustainable Tarras”.
Just three months before his death, Mr Neill shared he was cancer-free after a 2022 diagnosis of stage three angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a form of blood cancer.
The actor’s family announced his death three days ago in a statement shared on social media.
“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life,” it read.
Sam Neill starred as Dr Alan Grant in Jurassic Park
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His family praised the care provided by St Vincent’s Private Hospital for their “incredible work”.
Mr Neill revealed he was undergoing chemotherapy and CAR-T cell therapy in his 2023 autobiography Did I Ever Tell You This?.
The actor was best known for his role in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 Jurassic Park as Dr Alan Grant, a role he reprised in 2001’s Jurassic Park III and 2022’s Jurassic World: Dominion.
He also starred in Possession, Event Horizon and The Piano and on TV shows such as Peaky Blinders.
PICTURED: Sam Neill, Isabelle Adjani and Heinz Bennent at the Cannes Film Festival for Possession
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After his passing, tributes poured out from co-stars, remembering him as a loving father and fine actor.
Jurassic Park co-star Jeff Goldblum posted a message reading: “The next great adventure begins. Love, always and forever.”
And Peaky Blinders co-star Cillian Murphy said: “Like everyone who knew and worked with Sam, I admired him and adored him in equal measure. He was one of the kindest, funniest and gentlest people, and one of the finest actors.”
And Mr Spielberg said: “Sam was exceptionally collaborative. It was a stretch for him to play a character who acted as though children were messy and smelly because this was the opposite of the loving father he was to his children.
“I adored making all the Jurassic movies with him. Along with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, we will always have our Jurassic family and Sam will never be forgotten by us or his many millions of fans around the world.”