Directors Colin Trevorrow and Phillip Noyce pay tribute to Sam Neill

Directors Colin Trevorrow and Phillip Noyce have remembered working with Sam Neill following his death on Monday.

Trevorrow, who directed Neill in 2022's Jurassic World Dominion, posted a still of the actor in character as Dr. Alan Grant on Instagram on Monday and recalled working with him on the film.

"Sam Neill was a deeply soulful and beautiful man. He was a friend and collaborator at a challenging time, and his strength gave us all strength," he wrote. "I'll remember him for his tranquility, his love of wine, and for the calm assuredness he brought to his characters. It's not every lifetime you get to befriend a legend. Forever grateful."

The New Zealand actor rose to international prominence when he made his debut as palaentologist Dr. Grant in 1993's Jurassic Park. He reprised the role in 2001's Jurassic Park III and later reunited with his original co-stars Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum for 2022's Jurassic World Dominion.

Meanwhile, Australian director Phillip Noyce, who directed Neill and Nicole Kidman in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm, credited The Piano star for helping him make the jump to Hollywood films.

"Sam was perhaps the most gentlemanly actor ​I ever encountered. Level-headed and sincere in a show business world of crazy egos. His word was his contract," he said in a statement to The Guardian.

"​In a strange way Sam was responsible for my long career in Hollywood. When there were rumours that George Miller might have secretly directed Dead Calm, Sam assured the American producer​, Mace Neufeld​, that I was indeed the director -​ and Mace then signed me to direct Harrison Ford in Patriot Games."

In addition to Jurassic Park and Dead Calm, Neill was also known for films including Event Horizon, The Piano, The Hunt for Red October, Possession and Hunt for the Wilderpeople, and the TV series Peaky Blinders.

He passed away in Sydney, Australia on Monday at the age of 78. Although he battled a type of blood cancer between 2022 and April 2026, his family confirmed he was cancer-free at the time of his death