Sam Neill has revealed that he is "prepared" for death as he has updated fans on his battle against his cancer diagnosis.
Earlier this year, the 76-year-old Jurassic Park legend disclosed his health ordeal in an excerpt from his upcoming memoir, aptly titled Did I Ever Tell You This.
In an exclusive interview with the BBC, Neill disclosed that his medical journey started in March 2022 when he was diagnosed with stage three non-Hodgkin lymphoma - an aggressive form of cancer.
The unwelcome news of his diagnosis coincided with Neill's promotional tour for the third installment of the "requel" series of Jurassic Park, where he was reunited with his original co-star, Laura Dern.
During this period, he observed "lumpy glands in his neck," which were later confirmed to be cancerous.
Enduring rounds of chemotherapy, Neill faced initial setbacks. However, a turning point arrived when he was administered a novel chemotherapy drug that produced remarkable results.
Though he'll be required to continue taking the medication for the rest of his life, he revealed earlier in the year that he was in remission.
Neill, ever the optimist, expressed: "I'm not afraid of dying; what I don't want to do is to stop living because I really enjoy living."
The actor told ABC that although he is still in remission, the doctors have told him that the medication he is on will stop working in the future.
"I’m prepared for that," Neill said while adding that he is "not remotely afraid" of dying.
Neill went on: "I started to look at my life and realize how immensely grateful I am for so much of it. I started to think I better write some of this down because I’m not sure how long I have to live. I was running against the clock."
That being said, he revealed that dying would "annoy" him. He said: "I’d really like another decade or two, you know?"
"We’ve built all these lovely terraces, we’ve got these olive trees and cypresses, and I want to be around to see it all mature. And I’ve got my lovely little grandchildren. I want to see them get big. But as for the dying? I couldn’t care less."
The actor spoke to the Independent earlier this year where he explained that he had no intention of giving up his day job, describing the idea as "intolerable".
Neill said: "I love acting. It’s really good for me to keep walking onto new sets with young actors and all that stimulation. New words, new ideas, there’s nothing like it. I never want to give that up. The idea of retirement, of having to play golf, fills me with untold dread."
We wish Neill all the best.