Celebrity Featured: Sam Neill
Artist: Jan Williamson
About Sam Neill
Sam Neill was born on 14 September 1947 in Omagh, Northern Ireland and moved to New Zealand in 1954 with his family who owned Neill & Co., the largest liquor retailers in New Zealand. He studied English Literature at the University of Canterbury where he had his first exposure to acting.
After working at the New Zealand National Film Unit as a director and actor, Neill was cast as the lead in the New Zealand film Sleeping Dogs. Following this he appeared in the Australian classic, My Brilliant Career (1979), opposite Judy Davis. This appearance led to his being selected to play Damien Thorn in Omen III: The Final Conflict in 1981, one of the sequels to The Omen. In the late-1970s his mentor was the notable British actor James Mason.
Neill is known for his leading and co-starring roles in major films including Dead Calm (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), The Piano (1993), Sirens (1994), Jurassic Park (1993), Event Horizon (1997), The Dish (2000) and Jurassic Park 3 (2001).
He hosted and narrated a series of 2002 documentaries for BBC entitled Space. He is currently starring in the historical drama The Tudors, playing Cardinal Wolsey, on the Showtime Network. In 2006, Neill also lent his voice to a series of radio ads for Fifth Third Bank in the midwestern U.S.
He is a supporter of the Australian Speak Easy Association and the British Stammering Association (BSA). Neill also supports the Australian Labor Party, Greenpeace, OxFam, and the World Wildlife Fund.