Hugh Jackman joined the outpouring of tributes being posted in honor of the late Sam Neill on Monday, July 13, after it was announced the “Jurassic Park” star unexpectedly passed away early that morning.
Along with the sci-fi blockbuster, Neill is remembered for the acclaimed fantasy miniseries “Merlin,” a 1998 coproduction of Hallmark and NBC.
For the tribute, Jackman chose to repost an old Instagram video of Neill’s which shows the star spending a tender moment with his duck, Magda. He originally shared the clip while announcing the duck’s death to his followers in August 2025, and said it showed his final time holding the duck.
Hugh Jackman Calls Sam Neill a ‘Hero’
Alongside his repost, Jackman wrote, “Sam was a hero of mine.” He then reflected on how fortunate he was to have gotten to know the icon, declaring, “To meet him and drink wine together in New Zealand was a moment I will never forget. We have lost an incredible actor and man.”
The action star, who is finished up his message by sending love to Neill’s family and friends.
While Jackman never appeared in a project with Neill, he did recently take on a role that seemed like a possible nod to the Neill’s real-life persona. In 2026 mystery comedy “The Sheep Detectives,” Jackman portrays George Hardy, a kindly shepherd who reads detective novels to his animals each night.
Likewise, Neill gained viral recognition on social media for his habit of reading stories and poetry to his rescue cows.
Sam Neill’s Final Instagram Post Showed His Altruism
In his final Instagram post, which was shared a week before his death, Neill joined indigenous New Zealand activists in a fight to protect their homeland from gold mining.
Neil explained in the clip, “I’m not against mining. I’m against THIS mine. If this mine goes ahead – and God willing, it won’t – everything that you see here is under a claim. And there’ll be mining all around us. And that’ll be the end.”
As he spoke, the camera panned to show a pristine mountainous region that stretched for what appeared to be miles.
He then explained his personal connection to the area, which was identified as the Dunstan Mountains, a range in Central Otago, South Island. He said, “My family have been here for over 150 years. I’m connected to this land like nowhere else on this earth.”
Santana Minerals is the Australian mining company attempting to open the mine. The company pursued a fast-track process to gain approval. A final decision was originally expected to come in October 2026, but RZN says the timeline is now uncertain as locals continue to resist.
Sam Neill Beat Cancer, But Was Undergoing Indefinite Chemotherapy at the Time of His Death
Neill was previously diagnosed with a rare blood cance, but his family clarified in the statement announcing his passing that he was free of his cancer at the end.
Back in 2023, Neill told The Guardian he was being treated for stage-three blood cancer. The piece explains, “Neill first experienced swollen glands during publicity for Jurassic World Dominion in March last year and was soon diagnosed with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma.”
It goes on to say Neill received chemotherapy that started to fail, before transitioning to a new chemotherapy drug which he’d need to take monthly for the rest of his life, although he’d been declared cancer-free.
