Inside Sam Neill’s winery estate where animals have celebrity names
Actor Sam Neill has passed away at 78 following a battle with lymphoma, leaving behind a legacy that includes both a prolific acting career and his passion project, the Two Paddocks winery in New Zealand. Neill often credited his acting work for sustaining the vineyard, which he developed into a successful organic wine producer.
Why it matters
The story provides a human-interest look at the intersection of celebrity life, personal passion, and the challenges of agricultural entrepreneurship.
Jurassic Park star Sam Neill died at the age of 78, just weeks after saying he was cancer-free following a long battle with Stage 3 angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma.His family announced his death in a post shared on his Instagram account. They said he died in Sydney, Australia, surrounded by his loved ones, whom they described as his whanau, the Maori word for extended family.Born in Northern Ireland to an English mother and a New Zealand father, Neill whose career spanned more than 100 film and television productions, often said his greatest passion was not acting but his New Zealand winery, Two Paddocks.Neill bought the first piece of land for the winery in 1993 and expanded it over the years.
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