The film that didn't win over theaters, but remained the most important to Sam Neill

Over the course of a career spanning more than five decades, Sam Neill has balanced character roles and leading roles with equal success, but some of his best work has remained far from the attention it deserves.

Although audiences will forever remember him most for his role as Dr. Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg's "Jurassic Park," which became the highest-grossing film in cinema history upon its release, his filmography is also rich in smaller but artistically significant projects.

Neil died suddenly today at the age of 78, after recovering from cancer, his family said, as reported by Reuters.

From John Carpenter's horror film "In the Mouth of Madness" and Fred Shapsie's drama "Evil Angels," to Paul VS Anderson's science fiction thriller "Event Horizon" and John Ruane's black comedy "Death in Brunswick," Neil often chose a variety of roles, regardless of whether the films were big box office hits. What they all had in common was his strong acting contribution.

The New Zealand actor has been switching between domestic productions and Hollywood for decades, working in film and television, and it is symbolic that his first posthumous project will be "Godzilla x Kong: Supernova", which is scheduled for release in 2027. With this film, he returns to the genre of large-scale monster spectacles that made him world famous.

However, when talking about the role that, in his opinion, remained the most overlooked, Neil did not choose one of the big hits, but the 2008 film "Dean Spanley" directed by Toa Fraser.

In his memoir, "Did I Ever Tell You This?", the actor described the title character as "the most challenging role he's ever played." The film tells the unusual story of a father and son who discover that an aristocrat played by Neil is actually the reincarnation of a dog. Through stories of his past life, his character helps Horace and Henslow Fisk, played by Peter O'Toole and Jeremy Northam, repair their broken family relationship.

"It amazes me how often people tell me that 'Dean Spanley' is their favorite movie. Not many people have seen it, which makes the reaction all the more surprising," Neil wrote, adding:

"I'd like you to look at him. I'm very proud of him."

However, the actor admits that he was not initially attracted to the role.

"She scared me before we even started," he wrote, revealing that he turned down the offer several times before finally agreeing.

"They kept coming back and I finally gave in. I'm glad I did. It's a comedic role, but it's also full of emotion," he said.

Although the film was generally well-received by critics, "Dean Spanley" was not a significant box office success. It grossed less than $1,5 million on a budget of $15 million, and in the United States, it was not distributed in theaters, but was shown on television.

It is for this reason that Sam Neill considered it one of the most neglected achievements of his career - a film that may not have found a wide audience, but it held a special place for him.