The Dinosaur Man: A Sam Neill Story

Welcome to the Nut House

Author's Note: This is dedicated to Sam Neill, whom I love. And also the original Jurassic Park cast, cause they were awesome.

"So, are you in?" A masculine voice said. Nikole Thomas grinned as she listened to the man from the other end of the phone.

"I can't believe Laura Dern turned this role down," she responded.

"She had other commitments Nikole, you know how it works," the man sighed.

Nikole smiled again, picturing her friend's frustration. Steven Spielberg wasn't exactly an impatient man, but he didn't like wishy washy actors or actresses, and Laura Dern had been going back and forth on this new role for months, delaying the entire film process.

"Who else is going to be in this movie? I'd like to know what sort of nut house I'm becoming a part of," Nikole teased, prompting a laugh from the famous director.

"Well, some of your old pals are in it. We've got Jeff Goldblum, who you've done a few movies with, Samuel L. Jackson, Richard Attenborough, Wayne Knight, and Bob Peck," Steven listed.

Nikole grinned, already knowing what sort of chaos was going to ensue on set. All the people Steven had mentioned were pretty good friends of hers, and when all of them got together, it could get a bit crazy.

Nikole paged through the script, looking at the cast of characters of "Jurassic Park," a gripping science fiction novel about a dinosaur theme park that goes wrong. She went through each one with Steven, figuring out who was cast as who. She would be working a lot with Jeff, he was playing the mathematician Ian Malcom. She was playing Dr. Ellie Sattler, a paleobotanist. Bob Peck would be the game warden, and Richard would be the eccentric creator of the park, John Hammond.

As she went through the rest of the characters, one in particular caught her eye. "Steve, who's playing Dr. Alan Grant?" she asked. He was the lead in the movie, a kid hating paleontologist that ends up a hero while trying to save everyone from the dinosaurs.

"He's a New Zealander, he's been in quite a few movies. His name's Sam Neill," Steven answered.

"Sam Neill? You mean, "The Hunt For Red October," "Reilly: Ace of Spies" Sam Neill?" Nikole asked, her eyes wide.

"Yeah...you know him?" Steven asked, catching Nikole's tone.

"I don't know him personally, I only know of him. I love him as an actor, I'm a big fan of his. I've heard he's a very good man, very down to earth. Sean Connery was practically bursting with praise for the man, and you know Sean," Nikole said, her excitement growing.

"So I've heard, everyone that I know that's worked with him says that he is one of their favorite people. He seemed very excited to be a part of the movie. He already knows Bob and Richard very well, so you guys should all end up being pretty tight knit by the end of this. You're going to be spending a lot of time with him in this film," Steven said, relief evident in his voice.

"I can't wait to meet him," Nikole gushed, unable to help herself.

"Funny, he said the same thing about you. Well, I'll see you in a couple of days then. Thanks a lot Nikole, I have a great feeling about this movie," Steven said, before hanging up the phone.

Nikole walked away, already heading to her room to pack. She was thrilled at the opportunity to be a part of this movie. She was working with one of the best directors in the business, and she practically knew the whole cast. Besides, she was going to be working closely with one of the nicest guys in the film industry.

"And he's handsome..." she thought to herself, remembering him in "My Brilliant Career." Shaking her head, she began to pull out a few suitcases. "This is going to be fun..." She thought.

Well there chapter 1, chapter 2 coming soon!