Zoe Williams Interviews Sam Neill: Charming and Frank After Cancer
Journalist Zoe Williams recounts her 2024 remote interview with Sam Neill, highlighting his charisma and honesty after lymphoma treatment, his views on Hollywood, and his career.
Interview with Sam Neill
Journalist Zoe Williams interviewed Sam Neill remotely in 2024 while he was filming the Netflix series 'Untamed' in Vancouver. The main topic was the Australian courtroom drama 'The Twelve,' and Neill openly admitted the second season was 'considerably stronger' than the first—a rare candor since actors usually avoid criticizing their own projects.
Neill, known for his self-deprecating charm, had recently undergone treatment for angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma. The experience prompted him to write a memoir and gave him a refreshing, no-nonsense outlook. He described himself as 'an idle man,' which Williams challenged given his extensive filmography. Neill replied that he works a lot but still considers himself an idler. He even disappeared from Zoom to find his book but returned with Richard Flanagan's 'Question 7,' saying, 'Never mind my book, this book is better.'
The actor noted that his first feature, 'Sleeping Dogs' (1976), was the first New Zealand film to get a US release, and he didn't become a full-time actor until age 30. 'Dead Calm' shot him and Nicole Kidman to fame, but Neill never wanted to move to Hollywood. 'There was nothing but show business. No other conversations, no other interests. It bores the shit out of me,' he said. Instead, he splits his life between performing and farming, growing wine to stay sane.
Among his independent films, Neill is proudest of 'Possession' (1981), calling it 'very Polish and very brave.' After his memoir and cancer treatment, he remains tireless: 'The idea of not working fills me with dread. Some of it is to do with coming from a little place, the most obscure place in the world, and being asked to do something with an international dimension. How immensely seductive is that?'
