Sam Neill died from pneumonia

Sam Neill, the Jurassic Park actor, died from pneumonia, his long-time agent has confirmed.

Sam Neill, the Jurassic Park actor, died from pneumonia, his long-time agent has confirmed. The actor, best known for playing Dr Alan Grant in the 1993 blockbuster franchise, died aged 78 in Sydney, Australia, on Monday. His death came three months after he announced he was cancer-free following treatment for stage-three angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a rare form of blood cancer diagnosed in 2022.

Philip Grenz, Neill's representative, disclosed the actor's cause of death on Thursday after speaking with his family, in response to what he described as "inaccuracies and outright falsehoods" in news reports. "Sam passed away from pneumonia. Prior to becoming sick, Sam had valiantly fought and beaten lymphoma through a new treatment called CAR-T therapy.

In addition to running his award-winning winery, Two Paddocks, Sam had filmed four projects back-to-back during the past year, all of which will be released within the coming months," Mr Grenz wrote in a statement. Mr Grenz said a private memorial would be held at Neill's farm in New Zealand on a date yet to be determined, adding that he was "an intensely private man who loathed a fuss". "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."

The New Zealand actor, who was born in Northern Ireland, had been diagnosed with blood cancer but later underwent a clinical trial using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, a form of immunotherapy. Neill's family said he was cancer-free at the time of his death, which they described as "sudden and unexpected". In a statement, his family said: "It is with immense sadness that the whānau [a Māori word for extended family] of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday July 13, in Sydney, Australia.

"Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life." Neill first announced he was being treated for cancer in Did I Ever Tell You This?, his 2023 memoir. "I'm not afraid to die, but it would annoy me," Neill said, when he first spoke about his chemotherapy after his memoir was published.

He described the chemotherapy as a "pretty miserable business but it was keeping me alive". Rima Te Wiata, Neill's former co-star, who appeared alongside him in Taika Waititi's 2016 comedy Hunt for the Wilderpeople, earlier revealed that he developed pneumonia before his death. In an interview with NZ Herald, she said: "It really sucks.

"I'm sure, as he said in the press once, he's not scared of death, but he would be annoyed. "He would be like, 'Oh, for goodness sake! I got over my cancer, and now look, now I get pneumonia.

What next?' "But he's on his big journey now." Tributes have poured in for the actor, who was also known for playing the corrupt senior police officer Major Chester Campbell in the first two seasons of Peaky Blinders alongside Cillian Murphy.

Joseph Mazzello, who played Tim Murphy opposite Neill's Dr Alan Grant in Jurassic Park, described the actor's death as a "gut punch". In an emotional video posted to Instagram, the 42-year-old fought back tears as he paid tribute to his former co-star. "I had been following his cancer diagnosis and his recovery and was so happy and thankful when I found out he was cancer-free, so this just comes I think as an extra gut punch, because I thought he was through it – but that is life, isn't it?"

Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, Neill's other Jurassic Park co-stars, also paid tribute following his death. Dern said: "Sam was my beloved lifetime friend... He showed me the depths of loyalty, protectiveness, and love, always with the driest of wit.

He was a true and noble gentleman, wrapped up in my dream leading man. I will love you forever, Dr Alan Grant." Goldblum said: "The next great adventure begins.

Love, always and forever."