Australian actor Sam Neill dies at age 78, according to multiple reports. The outlets say his death is described as “sudden and unexpected.” They also point to his last public appearance at the ARIA Hall of Fame Awards in Sydney, held about four weeks before his death, where he appeared healthy and in good spirits. One outlet includes that Neill posted or shared an image on Instagram in the period leading up to his death, and that the photo is being treated as among his final publicly visible appearances. Friends and acquaintances are referenced in some reporting, with claims that people close to him were surprised by his passing and that they did not anticipate it. The articles provide no new, verified medical details in the excerpts provided and focus instead on the timeline of his final appearances and the unexpected nature of the death. Overall, the reporting agrees on the core facts: Neill dies at 78, his death is characterized as sudden, and his most recent public appearance was at the ARIA Hall of Fame Awards in Sydney about four weeks earlier.