Sam Neill: Hollywood star leads cast of new Foxtel drama The Twelve

Hollywood star Sam Neill has given a blunt appraisal of the old school rivalry between the big and small screen.

Hollywood star Sam Neill has given a blunt appraisal of the old school rivalry between the big and small screen.

Fortunately things have changed with both mediums attracting big names but the Jurassic Park actor says television was once considered the unpopular cousin of movies.

“When I started working in film, working in TV was like getting chlamydia and you were stuck with it forever,” the 74-year-old said at a media call announcing his latest acting project. “Things have really changed in my lifetime, which is getting longer and longer. I’m old enough to be everyone’s father here.”
Neill will lead an all-star cast in new Foxtel television crime series, The Twelve, a 10-part courtroom drama that will also star Marta Dusseldorp, Kate Mulvany, Brooke Satchwell and Hazem Shammas. More names will be announced over the coming weeks.

Cast from the new Foxtel drama TV series The Twelve: Brooke Satchwell, Hazem Shammas, Marta Dusseldorp, Sam Neil and Kate Mulvany. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“When I first got into this, there was a miniseries and there were heaps of soaps, this is very much more ambitious than anything that we were doing about the time of the first world war,” he joked. “It is a very strong cast; it is going to be a noisy set I would think. We have all been so quiet for such a long time.”

The Twelve is loosely based on a Belgium series of the same name and will begin production in Sydney from Tuesday. The story will centre around an accused woman, to be played by Mulvany, who is on trial for killing a child.

New Zealander Neill plays the defence lawyer while Dusseldorp will represent the prosecution.

“I’m not in a trackie and not in a corset,” Dusseldorp said, referring to her other Foxtel roles in A Place To Call Home and Wentworth.

“It is nice. The unique thing about this show is the size of the cast and that there are so many Australian voices that represent all of Australia. It is a dream. Foxtel’s continual support of our stories and getting them around the world, their commitment is really fantastic. Also, it is a ripping yarn, it is a labyrinth of complex fragilities in human nature.”

Marta Dusseldorp at today’s press call. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Mulvany earlier this week returned to Australia from the US, where she has been working on hit American series, Hunters, with the likes of Al Pacino and Logan Lerman.

“This show is of course about the official judging in the court but what do the jurors bring to the court and what do they take away and how far does that judgment reach in themselves and within their family and friends,” she explained.

“Just how equal can a court be with so many differing existences. It is a really knotty, brilliantly complicated and compelling look at who we are and how we as humans judge each other.”

Satchwell and Shammas meanwhile will play jurors. For Shammas, it will be an interesting turn considering his sister is a criminal defence lawyer.

Sam Neil at the launch of The Twelve. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Brooke Satchwell speaks to the media. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“The crime we’ve got here is a little more ambiguous and a little more, maybe privileged,” he said.

“Working with a cast like this is a little overwhelming. The story really reflects all of the shades of grey, combined together and it is going to be explosive.”

Satchwell said she had never been called for jury duty in real life and reflected that there may be a perception of bias because she is familiar for her acting work.

“Maybe people would be weirded out by the girl from Neighbours,” she said.

“To be involved in a project like this, the subject material means the world to me because I do think it is curious how we judge each other, whether it be in day to day life or the justice system.”