Sam Neill's SECRET LIFE ON THE FARM

Far away from the bright lights of Hollywood, the actor has carved out a little patch of paradise

When Sam Neill returns home to New Zealand after a long stint overseas filming, he can be assured of a sweet reunion. But these days, it's with the menagerie of beloved animals he's collected at his Two Paddocks winery and farm nestled in Central Otago.

"So pleased to finally be home with all the Two Paddocks cru," the 74-year-old star gushed on social media on 2 April. After spending more than four months in Sydney filming his upcoming courtroom drama The Twelve, Sam said he was “thrilled to get back to my pig, my sheep and my grapes". He also joked he's “not too lonely" back home in the country, thanks to all the wildlife who drop in for a visit at the picturesque property.

The father-of-two and grandfather - who has two marriages behind him and quietly split from his latest love, Aussie TV presenter Laura Tingle, 61, last year - finds great comfort in the company of his animals, including pigs, chickens, sheep and goats.

STAR-STUDDED FARM