Where this was said
Sam Neill Dies at 78: Remembering a Five-Decade Career
At 4:15 · chapter starts 4:12
The death of Sam Neill at age 78 brings to a close one of the most versatile careers in English-language film and television. NPR's Anastasiya Tsoukas paid tribute to the New Zealand actor, best known for his portrayal of paleontologist Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg's 1993 blockbuster Jurassic Park [1] — Anastasiya Tsoukas "Sam Neill, the beloved New Zealand actor who made paleontologist Alan Grant a household name in Jurassic Park, has died at 78. His career s…" 03:51 . But Neill's legacy is far broader: he played Holly Hunter's emotionally restrained husband in Jane Campion's art-house masterpiece The Piano, and brought menacing charisma to the role of Inspector Campbell in the first two seasons of the BBC's Peaky Blinders. His family confirmed he died in Sydney, Australia, offering no further details about the cause of death. A clip of one of his most famous Jurassic Park lines — pondering what happens when 65 million years of evolution are suddenly thrown into chaos — served as a fitting audio epitaph for a performer who brought quiet intensity to every role he played.
