Sam Neill Is Perfect for The Legend of Zelda's King of Hyrule

It was devastating news to learn that Sam Neill had passed away on July 13, 2026, especially to those of us who grew up watching him play iconic characters like Jurassic Park's Dr. Alan Grant, Merlin in the Merlin miniseries, and Captain Vasily Borodin in The Hunt for Red October. He will be, and already has been, missed tremendously, but I'm also thrilled that I'll apparently get to see him one last time in the upcoming Legend of Zelda film. This is essentially one of the most successful video game franchises of all time colliding with one of the greatest actors of our time, so there's quite a bit of promise there already. The only question now is which role the late Sam Neill might be playing in The Legend of Zelda, though one character in particular feels like it was created specifically for him.