Laura Dern is paying tribute to her Jurassic Park co-star Sam Neill after his death at the age of 78.
“Sam was my dearest lifelong friend,” the actress exclusively told Page Six in a statement Monday. “He was always resourceful and showed me the depth of his loyalty, protection and love.”
The Oscar winner described Neil as “a true noble gentleman” and “wrapped up in the lead role of my dreams”.
“I will love you forever, Dr. Alan Grant,” Dern, 59, concluded her statement.
Dern and Neil played lovers Dr. Ellie Sattler and Dr. Alan Grant, respectively, in 1993’s Jurassic Park.
They also reprized their roles in 2001’s Jurassic Park III and 2022’s Jurassic World Dominion.
In 2022, Dern and Neal explained that they initially did not mind their characters falling in love despite the 20-year age difference between the actors, but that their feelings changed as the years went on.
“I’m 20 years older than Laura! At the time, this was a perfectly appropriate age difference for a leading man and woman,” Neil said in an interview between the two with The Sunday Times.
Dern was 23 when she filmed Jurassic Park and 26 when the movie was released in theaters, while Neil was in his 40s at the time.
Neal said she realized the relationship between Dr. Sattler and Dr. Grant was inappropriate after she saw herself in a magazine article titled “Old Geezers and Gals.”
Dern said that at the time “it felt perfectly appropriate to fall in love” with Neil, but she realized it was wrong because of “cultural perceptions of patriarchy.”
While promoting 2022’s Jurassic World Dominion, Dern said it was a “dream come true” to work with Neil again.
“He was an extraordinary gentleman, and the moment I walked along the tent excavation site, I was so touched that Dr. Alan Grant was still waiting for me to show up. And it was so special,” the “Marriage Story” actress told Entertainment Tonight tonight.
Jurassic Park director Steven Spielberg paid tribute to Neil in his own statement to Page Six.
The 79-year-old director described Neil as “extraordinarily supportive” and said his role as a child-hater in the series was “the complete opposite of the loving father he was to his children”.
“I loved making all the Jurassic movies with him,” Spielberg continued. “Together with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, we will always have a Jurassic family, and Sam will never be forgotten by us or by his millions of fans around the world.”
Neil’s family confirmed his “sudden and unexpected” death in a statement on Instagram on Monday.
“Sam passed away surrounded by his family and with the dignity that characterized his life,” the statement said.
Two months before his death, Neil announced that he was cancer-free after a battle with a rare and aggressive form of cancer.
