In a new memoir, Sam Neill reveals that he has stage III blood cancer, the Guardian reports.
The New Zealand actor makes the revelation in Did I Ever Tell You This?, an autobiography scheduled for publication by Penguin U.K. imprint Michael Joseph on Thursday.
“The thing is, I’m crook,” Neill writes in the book, using a slang word meaning sick. “Possibly dying. I may have to speed this up.”
Neill, a native of Northern Ireland who moved to New Zealand with his family as a child, is known for his roles in movies such as Sleeping Dogs, The Hunt for Red October, The Piano, and Jurassic Park. He was nominated for Golden Globe Awards for his roles in the television movie One Against the Wind and the miniseries Reilly, Ace of Spies and Merlin.
In an interview with the Guardian, Neill said he’s made peace with his own mortality.
“I’m not afraid to die, but it would annoy me,” he said. “Because I’d really like another decade or two, you know?…I’ve got my lovely little grandchildren. I want to see them get big. But as for the dying? I couldn’t care less.”
Following the report in the newspaper, Neill shared an Instagram update to reassure his fans.
“I am alive and well and I have been in remission for eight months, which feels really good,” he wrote. “And I’m alive and kicking and I’m going to work. I’m very happy to be going back to work.”
There is no U.S. publication of Did I Ever Tell You This? scheduled at present.
Michael Schaub, a journalist and regular contributor to NPR, lives near Austin, Texas.
