Renowned actor Sam Neill reveals why changing his name was the ‘best decision’ he ever made

Long before he became the Jurassic Park star we know today, beloved actor Sam Neill went by a strikingly different name in his early days.

Neill made the disclosure in his memoir Did I Ever Tell You This, surprising fans with the revelation that his name at birth was Nigel John Dermot Neill.

Neill, who has captured the hearts of audiences around the world with his remarkable performances, shared that adopting the new moniker was indeed the “best decision” he ever made, setting him on a path to stardom that would change his life.

“The one thing I resent about my parents, the only thing, is that they called me Nigel,” Neill wrote in the book.

“Changing my name to Sam at the age of 11 was probably the best decision I made in my life.”

Celebrated as an “international leading man,” Neill is recognised as one of the most versatile actors of his generation.

Following his breakthrough performance in the 1977 film Sleeping Dogs, Neill took on prominent roles in critically acclaimed projects including My Brilliant Career (1979), Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981), A Cry in the Dark (1988), Dead Calm (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), The Piano (1993), and In the Mouth of Madness (1994).

He gained global fame for his portrayal of Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park (1993), a role he reprised in Jurassic Park III (2001) and Jurassic World Dominion (2022).