Sam Neill reportedly died after contracting pneumonia following cancer treatment
The actor's family previously described his passing as 'sudden and unexpected'
Veteran actor Sam Neill reportedly died after developing pneumonia while recovering from extensive cancer treatment, according to new reports from New Zealand.
The Jurassic Park star died on Monday, July 13, at the age of 78.
His family previously described his passing as "sudden and unexpected," while noting that he had remained cancer-free following his battle with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma.
According to the New Zealand Herald, Neill's body had been weakened by years of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, leaving him vulnerable to serious infections.
Actress Rima Te Wiata, his longtime friend and Hunt for the Wilderpeople co-star, reportedly confirmed that he had recently contracted pneumonia.
Neill's former partner, Laura Tingle, also spoke about his declining health, explaining that the cancer treatments had significantly compromised his immune system.
"His poor old body just sort of got a bit exhausted," Tingle said during an appearance on ABC Radio Sydney.
"He'd had a lot of chemo and a lot of immunotherapy and, thankfully, it finally cleared him of the blood cancer that he had, but that left him pretty compromised in terms of his immune system."
She added that the actor had been seriously ill in the weeks leading up to his death, and that family and friends had hoped he would recover.
Neill's family announced his death in a statement shared on his official social media accounts, saying he died in Sydney, Australia, surrounded by loved ones.
"Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life," the statement read.
"The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer-free."
The family also expressed gratitude to the staff at St Vincent's Private Hospital for their care and asked for privacy as they mourned the beloved actor.
Although no official cause of death has been publicly confirmed, the reported pneumonia complications come just months after Neill revealed that scans showed no evidence of cancer following his participation in a CAR T-cell therapy clinical trial.
Speaking to Australia's 7News in April, the actor celebrated the positive results, saying, "I've just had a scan just now and there is no cancer in my body, that's an extraordinary thing. I'm very, very excited that this can happen."
He then joked, "It's time I did another movie."
