Sam Neill Looks 'Frail' after Revealing Cancer Diagnosis - Living on Farm, He Still Feeds Animals & Cares for Grandkids

Award-winning actor Sam Neill has one of Hollywood's most eclectic acting careers. Last year, he was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, an experience that saw him write his first book. Today, he is in remission and enjoys life on his New Zealand farm, where he looks after his animals, grows grapes and vegetables, and spends quality time with his grandchildren.

New Zealand actor Sam Neill is today considered an international leading man, recognized and loved for his versatile roles ranging from playing an insurance investigator in "In The Mouth of Madness," paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant in the "Jurassic" franchise to the dark evil man in "The Piano."

Born in North Ireland in 1947, Neill is one of the most famous film personalities from the South Pacific. His soft-spoken nature and stunning good looks may have played a big part in placing him on the map, but his acting prowess has seen him snatch up some of the most coveted leading roles in the business.

His first ever role was the 1971 New Zealand film "The City of No," followed by the short "The Water Cycle" the following year. He also wrote and directed "Telephone Etiquette" for the New Zealand National Film Unit, where he was a scriptwriter for six years.

He, however, first achieved international recognition with his appearance in the 1977 "Sleeping Dogs," then two years later in "My Brilliant Career."

Several roles later, including playing Damien Thorn, the son of the devil in "Omen III: The Final Conflict," he landed a role that would throw him into international prominence, playing Dr. Alan Grant in the 1993 science fiction film "Jurassic Park."

He reprised the role in the 2001 sequel of the film "Jurassic Park II," and the 2022 "Jurassic World Dominion." He has had an incredibly exciting career, but the highlight of the first "Jurassic" movie for Neill was watching it in the same theatre as Princess Diana.

He retold how the cast would go into theatres to monitor how people were reacting to the film, and when they went to London, he found himself sitting behind Diana. He says he kept an eye on her and loved her reaction to the film, and when asked if he had a chat with her after the movie was over, he said:

"A little bit, but my son — who at that stage was about ten years old — she was much more interested in talking to him. They had a long chat. And they agreed on everything."

With over 150 films to his name, spanning over five decades, he also boasts other roles, including playing Paul in "Blackbird," Leo in "Palm Beach," Walter Finch in "The Daughter," and Captain David Hawthorne in "The Commuter." among many others. He also has plenty of other projects in the works and is not slowing down.

Sadly, the actor has been dealing with serious health issues in the past year. In his new memoir, "Did I Ever Tell You This?" the "Strong Medicine" actor reveals that his troubles started in March 2022, when he flew to Los Angeles on matters concerning the "Jurassic" movie.

The cast had a three-day weekend to do publicity, catch up, and goof with friends. But the fun moments were cut short when he noticed his neck appeared lumpy.

He consulted with his doctor, who assured him that the lumps on his neck were due to undetected COVID and would be there for a while. However, they only seemed to get bigger, and a week later, he returned to the doctor, who then sent him to a hospital for tests.

A positron emission tomography (PET) scan brought back results that shocked him immensely. He had stage 3 angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL), a rare and, often but not always, aggressive form of peripheral T-cell lymphoma.

He was immediately started on chemotherapy and has fought tooth and nail to beat the illness. Throughout the ordeal, he remained optimistic, and he danced a lot. The secret, he says, is dancing to the right music.

A fourth PET scan showed the cancer was in complete metabolic remission, and he could not be happier. He shared the good news, writing:

"Now I'm a living man, with every [intention] of going on living and living and living."

The "Dirty Deeds" actor is grateful for the gift of family, a powerful support system during these challenging times. He is a father of four, and even though he is twice divorced, he is not lonely.

He married his first wife, "Destination Love" actress Lisa Harrow, in 1978 and divorced 11 years later. They had one child, Tim Neill. The same year Neill divorced Harrow, he married his second wife, film makeup artist Noriko Watanabe, and had one child, Elena Neill, with her. Unfortunately, they divorced in 2015.

Besides the two children he had with his two wives, he is also a loving father to Watanabe's daughter from her first marriage. He also fathered a son in his twenties, who he put up for adoption. Father and son reunited in 1994.

The "Children of the Revolution" actor had his children and eight grandchildren, two of who he welcomed in 2019, helping him through his illness. The actor says while he cannot pretend that the past year hasn't been a dark time for him, he is grateful for his friends and family, who are a reference point to his life's joy and love.

A Shocking Diagnosis and a Characteristic Battle against Cancer

As Neill sat in a hospital bed being treated for an illness he had learned he had only days earlier, the future seemed bleak. Days after the shocking diagnosis, he lay on a hospital bed, having chemicals drained into his system.

He lost his hair after his first round of chemotherapy and made light of the situation by joking that he looked like a boiled egg sitting around in the pot long after the water had dried up. And when the hair from his beard started falling off, he quickly shaved it off, observing that he had not seen his face in a long time:

"Fifteen years, I'm thinking. And here was my face, now entirely unadorned. This was no small shock."

After completing his first round of chemotherapy, he went in for a second PET scan which showed the chemo was working okay, but a third one brought disturbing results. The tumors had returned.

The actor and his doctors chose a different drug, and he went in for a second and third round of chemo. The fourth one, however, was a bit harsh, but the actor remained undeterred. In fact, he even did some voiceover work during that period.

Two episodes into the series, however, his voice ran out. The doctors said his throat had ulcers, but the worst was the psychological blow it had on Neill. He had always finished a day's work, and being unable to do the voiceover made him feel weak.

And for a man who's used to working every day, he had no idea what to do with his time. He had never imagined writing a book, but then he began writing down bits and bits of his experience and eventually turned it into a memoir. Writing gave him a reason to live as he would sit in bed thinking about what to write the following day.

And while his life hung in the balance, he wondered how the book would end. He kept thinking he was a "crook" and needed to finish it quickly before any unexpected eventualities. After switching the drugs, the new ones seemed to work fine, and in December, he was well enough to spend time at his farm with his family.

Spending Christmas at his farm was the highlight of his year after being through so much. He shared how glorious it was to taste the wine and food, swim in his dam every day, and enjoy spending time with his family and grandkids.

Despite the treatment leaving him feeling and looking frail, he fights on, declaring that while he is not off the hook entirely, he has no cancer left in his body. The memories of his struggle will, however, always remain with him. He recalled:

"You know, [when I was sick] I would look in the mirror and see a completely different person, not a hair on my head, no eyelashes, the beard had fallen off on a pillow somewhere in hospital. I was unrecognizable."

Life on His Farm with His Celebrity-Named Animals

"The Horse Whisperer" star may be one of Hollywood's most stellar actors, but being a celebrity does not impress him much. Despite having legions of followers on social media, he has studiously avoided being branded a celebrity.

Contrary to the belief that movie stars prefer a life of glam and bright lights, Neill chooses to spend some days on his farm in Central Otago, New Zealand, and others in Sydney's Surrey Hills, where he can walk down the street and get his coffee without the public or paparazzi bothering him.

He shared that while he loves working in Hollywood and has made lasting friendships there, his heart has always been on his farm in New Zealand, which he calls home.

He has friends who are celebrities and are immensely famous, but he says he'd never swap his life for theirs. He enjoys a quiet life that he sometimes shares with his fans on social media.

Often he will appear with his farm animals, many of who are rescues he has named after his celebrity friends. He has a sow named Bryan Brown, a cow named Helena Bonham Carter, a duck he calls Kylie Minogue, and a chicken named Laura Dern.

He also has a ginger hen named Bryce Dallas Howard and a rooster named Michael Fassbender. As of 2019, the actor said he had 25 sheep, a dozen chickens, one duck, three pigs, and several goats.

His Twitter posts, which have become incredibly popular among his fans, show the actor sometimes in the company of his duck, Charlie, or doing yoga with his pig, who he loves hanging out with. He says of the pig:

"He comes to life beside me, but he respects my space if I just want to kick back, relax and read a book next to him."

He joked about the unlikely feuds and friendships on the farm, recalling how a stray sheep came from nowhere and instantly became friends with the horse, who never got along with the other horses.

Since that first meeting, they have never been more than ten yards apart. And the friendship is beneficial, too, as the sheep takes cover under the horse and stays dry whenever it rains.

While he did not set out to make his farm animals bonafide social media celebrities, he says people have reacted strongly to the farm, and in a world where there is so much hate and anger; he is happy to create even a little happiness for his fans.

Besides rearing animals, which he says are not for show and serve their respective production purposes, Neill also grows vegetables and fruits. During a sit-down with Vulture, the actor spoke of his farm, saying he had four vineyards with the farm in the heart of it.

Gardens of vegetables, herbs, gooseberry bushes, and heritage apple trees also surround him. In August 2021, the actor posted a photo of him holding a huge courgette with the hilarious caption:

"Turn your back for a minute; next thing you know, the courgette is a two-ton truck."

And when the harvests are rife, Neill has little helpers in the form of his grandbabies. In April 2022, the "Country Life" actor posted a cute photo of his grandchildren in the back of a truck watching over his bountiful pumpkin harvest.

The past year has proven just how fickle life is, yet Neill, 75, confesses he is not afraid to die. He would, however, appreciate it if he remained alive for another decade or two.

He has built beautiful terraces and planted cypresses and olive trees that he'd like to see mature: "And I've got my lovely grandchildren. I want to see them get big." He concludes.