American actor Jeff Goldblum has hit out at an internet hoax that claimed he died in a fall at the Kauri Cliffs golf links at Matauri Bay.
The actor, known for his role in Jurassic Park, has responded to his supposed death last year by saying the story was "trippy and disturbing".
He
had first heard about the hoax when he received a call at home in Los Angeles from his publicist.
"It was crazy.
"I've never been to New Zealand.
"It was wild and trippy but it was also disturbing.
"And viral technology as it is, it got around the world and legitimate people reported it.
"My mother and other people I am close to - there was a gap of time before they knew whether it was true or not.
"They called up very upset, but luckily nobody ran off the road."
Goldblum, 57, who is appearing on British comedy show Friday Night, said the hoax had been the work of "pranksters".
It is not the first time Kauri Cliffs has been in the headlines as the place of death for an American actor, similar stories surfacing in 2008 supposedly involving Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise.
A Kauri Cliffs receptionist said yesterday the lodge was closed for winter and nobody was available for comment.
