Jurassic Park star Sam Neill has passed away at the age of 78.
His family confirmed in a statement that the actor, who played the lead role of smart and dedicated paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant in the original movie, died on Monday, July 13.
Shortly after he breathed his last in Sydney, Australia, the New Zealand actor’s family released first statement, writing, “It is with immense sadness that the whānau [family] of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney, Australia.”
“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life,” his family shared in a statement, via Variety. “The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free.”
They continued, “They would like to express their deepest gratitude to the staff at St Vincent’s Private Hospital for their incredible care.”
Promising that more details will be shared later, the family ask actor’s supporters to respect their privacy “as they navigate this immeasurable loss.”
For the unversed, Sam, best known for starring as Dr Alan in the Jurassic Park trilogy and Jurassic World Dominion (2022), revealed in April that he was cancer-free after undergoing CAR T-cell therapy.
For the unversed, he was diagnosed with stage three blood cancer in March 2022.
The late actor has two movies that are currently in the works, The Last Resort and Godzilla x Kong: Supernova, that will now be released posthumously.
