Cillian Murphy is remembering his former “Peaky Blinders” co-star Sam Neill after the actor’s sudden death at 78.
“Like everyone who knew and worked with Sam, I admired him and adored him in equal measure,” Murphy, 50, exclusively told Page Six in a statement.
He went on to call the “Jurassic Park” actor, “one of the kindest, funniest and gentlest people, and one of the finest actors.”
The Oscar-winning “Oppenheimer” star concluded his heartfelt statement with, “RIP.”
Neill and Murphy went head to head in the first two seasons of the hit gangster drama, “Peaky Blinders,” which aired for six seasons from 2013 to 2022.
The show was a phenomenon, boasting A-listerslike Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, and the late David Bowie among its fans.
In Seasons 1 and 2, Neill played Chester Campbell, the main antagonist to Tommy Shelby (Murphy).
Set in Birmingham, England, after World War I, the show followed Tommy and his criminal gang, the Peaky Blinders.
Inspector Campbell was a police officer tasked with suppressing disorder in Birmingham. At various points, Campbell and Tommy struck deals and even saved each other’s lives, but they also tried to kill each other.
To add fuel to the fire of their complicated relationship, Tommy’s first love, Grace (Annabelle Wallis) was a spy for Campbell.
In the Season 2 finale, Neill’s character was fatally shot.
In an interview with the BBC in 2013, Neill described Campbell as, “probably fairly psychotic but he’s a righteous man, an upright man.”
The New Zealand actor, who amassed over 150 acting credits in his five-decade long career, added that he was attracted to the role because, “who you’re gonna be working with…is very important to me in terms of other actors.”
He noted, “It makes the day considerably more enjoyable when you’re working with people you think are good and it makes your job easier too.”
Neill’s family announced his death on Monday.
“It is with immense sadness that the whānau [family] of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney Australia,” they wrote via Instagram.
A cause of death was not announced. His passing was “sudden and unexpected,” his family said, but he was, “surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterized his whole life.”
“The Hunt for Red October” actor’s death comes just two months after he announced he was cancer-free, following a battle with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma – a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
In their statement, his family promised that “more details will be shared later,” but asked for “privacy” for now, “as they navigate this immeasurable loss.”
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