Sam Neill Reveals the Most Dangerous Moment He Faced on the Jurassic Park Set: ‘Do you think we might die today?’

Sam Neill recently opened up about a frightening moment from the set of Jurassic Park and why he was happy to return to the franchise for a new Super Bowl commercial. He shared the story in an interview with Entertainment Weekly while promoting Xfinity’s Super Bowl ad inspired by the classic film.

Neill said one of the main reasons he agreed to the commercial was the chance to work again with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum. The three actors rarely see each other because they live in different parts of the world. Neill lives in New Zealand, Goldblum is based in Italy, and Dern is in Los Angeles. As Neill put it, “That’s always a pleasure. It doesn’t happen enough.”

While talking about their bond, Neill recalled the most dangerous experience they shared during the original film. During filming in Hawaii in 1992, Hurricane Iniki hit the island. According to Neill, the cast arrived for work early one morning only to be told that production was shutting down. “They said, ‘We’re not going to work today… There’s a hurricane coming,’” he told Entertainment Weekly.

Neill described how the atmosphere suddenly changed, with the ocean pulling back and everything becoming quiet. He remembered walking to the beach with Dern, where she asked him a serious question. “Laura and I went down to the beach, and she said, ‘Do you think we might die today?’ And I said, ‘I think that’s entirely possible,’” he said.

The cast and crew spent hours taking shelter inside a hotel ballroom. Neill explained that while the storm passed quickly, it caused major damage. “It destroyed our sets,” he said, adding that they had to wait days before flying back to Los Angeles because the airport was blocked by debris. During that downtime, Neill said the group, including director Steven Spielberg, kept each other entertained. He described Spielberg as “very, very entertaining.”

Looking back, Neill said that experience made everything else feel easy. “I’ve been through a few semi-disasters on films, but that’s the closest we actually came to death,” he said.

The new Xfinity Super Bowl commercial brings Neill, Dern, and Goldblum back as Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, and Ian Malcolm. The ad imagines Jurassic Park with reliable Wi-Fi, where things do not fall apart and guests enjoy their stay. The commercial was filmed in California, with help from NBCUniversal to recreate the look and feel of the original movie.

Neill noted that none of the clothing he wore was from the original film. He had previously sold many of his Jurassic Park items for charity. “So they made me a new uniform,” he said, adding that he did not keep it this time in case another reunion happens.

Neill also briefly spoke about the latest film in the franchise, Jurassic World Rebirth. He called it “a family affair” and praised Scarlett Johansson, who leads the movie. “I feel like my daughter, she’s capable of kicking any a**,” he said jokingly. “She gets it from me.”

Stories like this show why the original Jurassic Park cast still has such strong chemistry. Going through something that intense together clearly left a lasting bond. It also makes their reunion feel more real and meaningful, even in a commercial. What do you think about Sam Neill’s story and the Jurassic Park reunion? Share your thoughts in the comments.