New Zealand Governor General Dame Cindy Kiro bestowed the honour upon Neill, 75, in a ceremony on Tuesday morning, taking his 2006 New Zealand Order of Merit to "its equivalent honour, a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit."
According to the Governor General's Facebook post, Neill's new title was approved by the late Queen Elizabeth earlier this year.
Neill, who was born in Ireland but moved to Christchurch where he attended Christ's College, is best known for his starring roles in Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park and Jane Campion's film The Piano.
But his acting debut came much earlier, in 1977, with Sleeping Dogs.
Most recently he will be remembered as Uncle Hec in Taika Waititi's Hunt for the Wilderpeople, in which he won Best Supporting Actor at the 2017 New Zealand Film and TV Awards.
He's also been nominated for a slew of awards including Emmys and Golden Globes and won a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2016 Australian Movie Convention.
Neill also made a documentary about New Zealand's identity in film, Cinema of Unease: A Personal Journey by Sam Neill.
This year, the father-of-four reunited with Hollywood heavyweights Jeff Goldblum and Laura Dern for the conclusion of the Jurassic Park franchise, Jurassic World Dominion.
