Sam Neill facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sam Neill
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Neill in 2017
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| Born |
Nigel John Dermot Neill
14 September 1947 Omagh, Northern Ireland
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| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Noriko Watanabe
(m. 1989; sep. 2017) |
| Children | 4 |
Sir Sam Neill (born Nigel John Dermot Neill on September 14, 1947) is a famous actor from New Zealand. He has starred in many different types of movies and TV shows. People know him for playing both serious characters and heroes in big action films. He is considered one of the most adaptable actors of his time.
Sam Neill was born in Northern Ireland. His mother was English, and his father was from New Zealand. In 1954, his family moved to Christchurch, New Zealand. He first became well-known for his role in the film Sleeping Dogs (1977). After that, he appeared in many other popular movies.
He became famous around the world for playing Dr. Alan Grant in the dinosaur movie Jurassic Park (1993). He played this role again in Jurassic Park III (2001) and Jurassic World Dominion (2022). Besides movies, Sam Neill has also been in many TV series. These include The Simpsons (1994), The Tudors (2007), and Peaky Blinders (2013–2014). He also played the wizard Merlin in the miniseries Merlin (1998).
Sam Neill has won several awards for his acting. These include the AACTA Award for Best Actor and the Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actor. He has also been nominated for Golden Globe Awards and Emmy Awards. In 2023, he won the Silver Logie for Most Popular Actor.
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Growing Up in New Zealand
Nigel John Dermot Neill was born in Omagh, Northern Ireland, on September 14, 1947. His mother, Priscilla Beatrice, was English, and his father, Dermot Neill, was from New Zealand. This means Sam Neill has connections to New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. His father was a soldier stationed in Northern Ireland when Sam was born.
In 1954, when Sam was seven years old, his family moved to New Zealand. They settled in Christchurch. He went to Cashmere Primary School and Medbury School. A year later, his parents and younger sister, Juliet, moved to Dunedin, his father's hometown. They lived in Macandrew Bay, where the children could explore freely during holidays.
Sam started calling himself "Sam" at school. This was because there were many other students named Nigel. He also felt the name Nigel was "a little effete" for a New Zealand playground. From 1961, he attended Christ's College in Christchurch. Later, he studied at the University of Canterbury. He wasn't sure what career he wanted. He thought about studying law but didn't do well in his first year.
Sam Neill enjoyed acting in plays during his university years. He played Theseus in A Midsummer Night's Dream. He also acted in a play called Marat/Sade. He found that drama was a big part of life in Wellington, unlike in Christchurch or Dunedin. He then moved to Victoria University of Wellington to finish his studies.
He later became a professional actor at Downstage Theatre, earning money for his performances. Sam Neill has shared that he used to have a stutter when he was younger. This made him hope people wouldn't talk to him. He said he mostly grew out of it, but sometimes it can still be noticed.
Sam Neill's Acting Journey
Sam Neill's first film was a New Zealand TV movie called The City of No (1971). He also wrote and directed a short film called Telephone Etiquette (1974). His big break in New Zealand came with the film Sleeping Dogs (1977). This movie was one of the first New Zealand films to be shown widely around the world.
Starting in Australia
After his success in New Zealand, Sam Neill moved to Australia. He had a guest role on the TV show The Sullivans. He then played the main romantic lead in My Brilliant Career (1979). This movie, where he starred opposite Judy Davis, was a huge international hit.
He also made other Australian films like The Journalist (1979) and Attack Force Z (1981). He appeared in TV shows such as Young Ramsay.
Becoming a Global Star
In 1981, Sam Neill got his first major international role. He played Damien Thorn, the son of the devil, in Omen III: The Final Conflict. That same year, he had a main role in the unique film Possession.
The 1982 film Ivanhoe made him very popular in Sweden. It has been shown on TV there every New Year's Day for over 40 years. Sam Neill was even considered for the role of James Bond at one point.
He has played many different characters, from heroes to villains. In the UK, he became famous for playing the real-life spy Sidney Reilly in the miniseries Reilly, Ace of Spies (1983). In America, he starred in Amerika (1987).
Some of his other important roles include:
- Dead Calm (1989), a thrilling movie.
- The Hunt for Red October (1990).
- Jurassic Park (1993), where he became Dr. Alan Grant.
- The Piano (1993), a critically acclaimed film.
- In the Mouth of Madness (1995), a horror film.
- Event Horizon (1997), a science fiction horror movie.
- Bicentennial Man (1999).
- The Dish (2000), a comedy.
- Jurassic Park III (2001).
Sam Neill has also continued to act in New Zealand films. These include Perfect Strangers (2003) and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016). In 1995, he directed a documentary called Cinema of Unease: A Personal Journey by Sam Neill.
In 2001, he hosted and narrated a BBC documentary series about space called Space. He played the famous wizard Merlin in the miniseries Merlin (1998) and its sequel Merlin's Apprentice (2006).
He also starred in the historical drama The Tudors as Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. He enjoyed this role very much, finding the character and story fascinating.
In 2012, he was in the TV series Alcatraz. He played Major Chester Campbell in the BBC series Peaky Blinders (2013–2014). In 2015, he appeared in the TV miniseries And Then There Were None, based on Agatha Christie's book.
In 2016, he starred in the New Zealand film Hunt for the Wilderpeople, directed by Taika Waititi. He also had a cameo in Taika Waititi's movie Thor: Ragnarok (2017), playing an actor who pretends to be Odin. He played this role again in Thor: Love and Thunder (2022).
In 2018, he played Mr. McGregor and voiced Tommy Brock in Peter Rabbit. In 2019, he was cast in Escape from Pretoria. He returned as Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic World Dominion, which came out in June 2022.
More recently, in 2022, Sam Neill appeared in the TV drama The Twelve. He is set to return for future seasons of this show. In June 2024, it was announced he would be in the Netflix drama Untamed.
Life Outside of Acting
In 1980, Sam Neill met actress Lisa Harrow, and they have a son together. In 1989, he married make-up artist Noriko Watanabe. They have a daughter, and he also adopted Noriko's daughter from her first marriage. They separated in 2017.
Sam Neill lives in Alexandra, New Zealand. He owns a winery called Two Paddocks. He enjoys running his winery, even though he says it's a lot of work and not very profitable. He likes to share updates about his farm animals on social media. He even names his animals after people he has worked with in the film industry.
In March 2023, Sam Neill shared that he had been diagnosed with a type of blood cancer in March 2022. He has been undergoing treatment, and the cancer is currently in remission. He will need monthly treatment for the rest of his life. During his time away from work for treatment, he wrote a memoir called Did I Ever Tell You This?, which was published in March 2023.
Awards and Recognition
Sam Neill has received many honors for his contributions to acting. In 1991, he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). In 2007, he was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (DCNZM).
When New Zealand brought back knighthoods in 2009, Sam Neill chose not to accept the title of "Sir" at first, saying it was "far too grand." However, in June 2022, he accepted the redesignation and became a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
In 2002, the University of Canterbury gave him an honorary Doctor of Letters degree. He also received the Equity New Zealand Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019 for his amazing acting career and for guiding other actors. In 2020, he received an Arts Foundation of New Zealand Icon Award, which is given to only 20 living people.
Images for kids
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Stills from Landfall – A Film About Ourselves (1974)
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Neill at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival
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See also
In Spanish: Sam Neill para niños
