Sam Neill's ex reveals years of cancer treatment left actor 'compromised' before his death
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Sam Neill's former partner, Laura Tingle, has shared emotional details about the health struggles the actor faced before his death.
Speaking on 'Sydney Mornings,' Tingle revealed that the 'Jurassic Park' star had spent years battling multiple forms of cancer and that the intensive treatments had weakened his immune system.
While leaving it to Neill’s family to discuss the circumstances surrounding his passing in greater detail, Tingle reflected on his final weeks, describing how his body had become increasingly exhausted after years of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, despite successfully beating blood cancer.
Sam Neill’s ex details actor's health battle before his passing
Tingle explained that Neill had been fighting cancer for several years.
She said she would leave it to Neill’s family "to say in great detail what happened," noting that the actor was “fighting various forms of cancer for at least the last five years intensively, and it takes a toll on anybody’s body.”
"He’d had a lot of chemo and a lot of immunotherapy and, thankfully, it had finally cleared him of the blood cancer that he’d had, but that left him pretty compromised in terms of his immune system," Tingle added.
Reflecting on his final days, she added, "I think his poor body sort of got a bit exhausted, as makes sense. So, he’s been pretty sick for the last couple of weeks, and everybody who loved him has been willing him on, from near and far. But I think it was just a bit too much to recover from one more time."
Tingle also shared where she believed Neill was emotionally in the final stage of his life, saying, "I think that’s definitely where he was."
Beyond discussing his health, she remembered the actor’s remarkable dedication to filmmaking, saying his career remained one of the defining parts of his life.
"He loved to work. (Australian film director George Miller) was just giving a rundown of the extraordinary body of work he did, and he was largely defined by being on a movie set," she told the radio program.
"He used to say, ‘I’m addicted to working,’ and I think he was. It was more than just liking being at work, it was something much more substantial than that, and he loved the challenge of it."
Sam Neill dies at 78
Neill, the beloved actor best known for his role in 'Jurassic Park', has died at the age of 78. His family confirmed the news in a statement shared on his official Instagram account on Monday, July 13, revealing that he passed away in Sydney, Australia, surrounded by loved ones.
The statement also expressed the late actor’s family’s gratitude to "the staff at St Vincent’s Private Hospital for their incredible care." The family further noted that while his death was “sudden and unexpected,” Neill had “remained cancer-free” before his passing.
