Sam Neill blames Steven Spielberg for weird accent in Jurassic Park

Sam Neill has blamed Steven Spielberg for his unusual accent in 1993 blockbuster Jurassic Park.

The New Zealand-based actor portrayed palaeontologist Dr. Alan Grant in the sci-fi action film, but has often been criticised over his hybrid voice.

However, in a new interview alongside his original co-stars Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum for Vanity Fair, Neill claimed director Spielberg asked him to stop using an American accent as the shoot began.

"He came up to me halfway through the day and he said, 'Hey, Sam, you know the accent we were talking about?' I said, 'Yeah, I've been working on it for four weeks....' He said, 'Don't worry about it, just use your own voice,'" the 74-year-old recalled. "I said, 'That's great, Steven, thank you so much.' And then four days later, he came up to me and said, 'You know that voice you're using now?' I said, 'Yeah, my voice?' He said, 'Somewhere in between.'"

Neill went on to describe how it was a "nightmare" to strike the right balance.

"So that's why I get a lot of flak to this day: Sam Neill's American accent in Jurassic Park was a load of T. rex poo," added Neill, while Dern insisted it was fine: "You give the fans everything they want. A little bit of you, a little bit American."

Jurassic World Dominion, the sixth instalment in the franchise, is set to hit cinemas in June.