Sam Neill has reassured fans that he is “alive and well” and cancer-free after his recent Stage 3 lymphoma diagnosis caused a panic on social media.
In an Instagram post, the “Jurassic Park” star clarified that his cancer has “been in remission for eight months, which feels really good.” Though the Guardian reported that key detail on Friday, headlines about Neill’s cancer battle sparked widespread concern for the 75-year-old actor nonetheless.
“My news seems to be all over the news at the moment, and it’s sort of ‘Cancer! Cancer! Cancer!’ Which is slightly tiresome because as you see, I am … alive and kicking,” Neill wrote Saturday on Instagram.
“Let’s not worry too much about ‘all that’ because I’m fine. Okay!”
Neill also shared a video expressing the same sentiment for good measure.
On Friday, the two-time Emmy nominee revealed in an interview with the Guardian that he was diagnosed with Stage 3 angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma — a blood cancer — shortly after he experienced swollen glands while promoting the 2022 film “Jurassic World Dominion.” Neill is able to manage the disease thanks to a chemotherapy drug he will continue taking every month for the rest of his life, according to the Guardian.
“Those dark moments throw the light into sharp relief, you know, and have made me grateful for every day and immensely grateful for all my friends,” he told the Guardian. “Just pleased to be alive.”
“I’m not afraid to die,” he added, “but it would annoy me. Because I’d really like another decade or two. … I’ve got my lovely little grandchildren. I want to see them get big.”
A day after the Guardian story came out, Neill lamented that the resulting news cycle focused so much on his health scare when “the main thing” he wanted to announce was his forthcoming memoir, “Did I Ever Tell You This?” Though he maintains that it is not a “cancer book,” the “Peaky Blinders” actor did pen the memoir while he was undergoing treatment and “suddenly couldn’t go to work.”
“I was very nervous, obviously as a first time author,” Neill said Saturday on Instagram.
“The tone of the book is one of surprise. I never thought that I would have a career as an actor, let alone an actor on screen. But that’s kind of what happened and I am full of gratitude looking back on this life, and that’s what the book is about. I hope you enjoy it.”
Neill’s “Did I Ever Tell You This?” is scheduled for release Thursday. The performer also plugged the upcoming limited series “Apples Never Fall,” starring him and Annette Bening, which starts shooting in a week.
“I’m very happy to be going back to work,” Neill said.
