Sam Neill: I was bullied into auditioning for James Bond, and failed

Times

9 hours ago

I grew up loving British actors and British films — everything from Alec Guinness to John Mills and Alastair Sim. But the first one I really admired was James Mason, particularly after watching 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, an absolute cracker. He had such tremendous charisma and became a mentor to me. When I was in my late twenties and working in Australia, he and his wife sent me an air ticket and said: 'Come and stay with us in Switzerland because we like what you do and think you should have a career abroad.' He changed my life.
Dunedin, where I grew up in New Zealand, may have had fewer than 100,000 people, but we had seven proper cinemas. On Saturday mornings our parents would dump us at one for the Chums Club: I'm sure they were pleased to get rid of us for an hour or two. We would watch serials — the one I remember clearly was Roy Rogers, who had a great steed called Trigger. It was a riot of uncontrolled kids, creating an unbelievable noise. Not a calm experience.
I think I'm the Prince Andrew of cinema crying. I don't remember ever crying at a movie. Perhaps I've had the odd sniffle, but if I have, then I'm not going to admit it.
I never imagined for a moment that I would be an actor, coming from a small, obscure town in the furthest away place. There was no moment. I'm surprised to this day.
I'd just finished the film Sleeping Dogs (1977) in New Zealand, when I got an audition to star in My Brilliant Career, which really put me on my way. I think I've done three auditions in my life, and the other two I failed. I was bullied into auditioning for James Bond by my bully agent [in 1986], and failed that. The other — and I quite wanted to do this one, unlike Bond — was for Pretty Woman. They said someone else was better on both occasions, and they were right, of course.
I was a bit of a mod growing up, with button-down shirts and narrow trousers. I was quite smart, really. Soon, I deteriorated and eventually corroded into hippie gear with flared trousers and things that you wouldn't be seen dead in these days. I was very conscious about what I wore as a teenager because there were these wonderful, exotic creatures who we found immensely attractive. The least we could do is look presentable.
It was either The Tale of Mrs Tiggy-Winkle by Beatrix Potter or Winnie-the-Pooh by AA Milne. Many years later, oddly enough, I was making a very strange horror science fiction film in London called Event Horizon, and we were renting AA Milne's house. It was strange going from the stark space horror to the comfort of little bears at night. I spent most of my childhood at boarding school, but when I was at home my older brother would read to me in the mornings. It fired my imagination.
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The first records I bought were 45s. It took me a long time to buy an album — I'd have to save up money during the holidays. The first was the great jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell's Midnight Blue, one of the greatest albums ever made. It's curiously adult, given that I was probably 13 at the time.
The local venue when I was growing up was Dunedin Town Hall, which held the distinction of being the only place which didn't sell out when the Beatles visited in 1964. That gives you an idea of how conservative it was. The first act I saw there was Bobby Rydell and Del Shannon. It wasn't the greatest concert I've ever been to, but thankfully I've been to many good ones since.
I can't recall the first, but the most famous was Barack Obama. It was a few years ago, and he'd been out of power for a few years. I was invited to be an interlocutor when he was on tour. The only thing not on the table for discussion was Trump. He was very warm, and I'm glad we have a photo together.
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I'm not famous. I'm in Melbourne for a few weeks, and occasionally someone stops me, but I'm never chased by autograph hunters. I'm just an everyday, reasonably useful actor who has been serving his time productively. But the offer to star in Jurassic Park was a red-letter day. Anything Spielberg touched was gold, yet I had no idea what a cultural phenomenon it would become. I'm now associated with dinosaurs, and the older I get, the more I look like one myself. And now we've got a new one with Scarlett Johansson, and I'm looking forward to seeing that. I actually played her father many years ago, in The Horse Whisperer directed by Robert Redford. So it feels like I've passed it down the family.
I don't think you ever really make it. But I do remember a great moment of satisfaction when I turned the key and unlocked the front door of the first house I built. I didn't feel like I'd made it, just that I'd made something.
Untamed is on Netflix from Jul 17
What are your formative cultural experiences? Let us know in the comments below
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