Merhan Karimi Nasseri, an Iranian man who lived for 18 years in Paris’s Charles de Gaulle Airport and inspired the Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks film The TerminalAccording to officials, he died Saturday at the airport. He was thought to be around 80 years old.
Nasseri died from a heart attack in the airport’s Terminal 2F around midday, officials said. He was treated by police and medical personnel, but he could not be saved.
Nasseri lived in the airport’s Terminal 1 from 1988 until 2006. From 1988 to 2006, he lived in Terminal 1 of the airport. He was initially in legal limbo due to his lack of residency papers. However, he eventually chose to remain at the airport. Officials said that he had been returning to the airport in recent weeks.
His saga inspired The TerminalThe 2004 film, starring Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta Jones and Stanley Tucci, is called “The Message”.
The film transformed real-life events to tell the story of an Eastern European man stuck in.New York‘s JFK Airport when he is denied entry to the United States. The film depicts a military coup in his country that prevents him from returning home. It earned $219 million worldwide.
Nasseri’s story was more complicated. He was travelling from Brussels to London via Paris. However, he lost his refugee visa and was denied entry to France. He took refuge in Terminal 1 at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport.
He stayed there from July 2006 to July 2006. After his hospitalization, he was transferred to various shelters. According to the Associated Press, he had just returned to living at the airport. It wasn’t clear if he had any source of income.