Actor Sam Neill has been a beloved part of pop culture history for decades. His appearances include Jurassic Park, several of its sequels, Event Horizon, and the underrated horror classic Possession. Sadly, it’s now been revealed that Sam Neill is currently undergoing treatment for Stage 3 blood cancer.
Sam Neill confirmed as much while speaking with The Guardian about his new memoir Did I Ever Tell You This?. The actor explained that he was diagnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma known as angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma.
Here’s what he had to say about the diagnosis and how he tried to keep busy during the chemotherapy treatment:
“I found myself with with nothing to do. And I’m used to working. I love working. I love going to work. I love being with people every day and enjoying human company and friendship and all these things. And suddenly I was deprived of that. And I thought, “What am I going to do?”
I never had any intention to write a book. But as I went on and kept writing, I realized it was actually sort of giving me a reason to live and I would go to bed thinking, “I’ll write about that tomorrow … that will entertain me.” And so it was a lifesaver really, because I couldn’t have gone through that with nothing to do, you know.
I can’t pretend that the last year hasn’t had its dark moments. But those dark moments throw the light into sharp relief, you know, and have made me grateful for every day and immensely grateful for all my friends. Just pleased to be alive.”
It’s nice to know that Neill had the opportunity to write his memoir and that it gave him something to do during such a stressful period. Though it’s also nice to see that he’s remained positive during the ordeal and continues to be grateful for each and every day.
Fans will soon be able to see Sam Neill in his next film appearance with the upcoming fantasy comedy from director Jeffrey Walker: The Portable Door. Neill stars alongside Christoph Waltz, Miranda Otto, and Patrick Gibson. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates regarding Neill’s career and health as we have them.