An Iranian man who inspired Steven Spielberg’s film The Terminal has died in Charles de Gaulle Airport where he lived for 18 years.
Merhan Karimi Nasseri died after a heart attack in Terminal 2F on Saturday, according to an official with the Paris airport authority.
Police and a medical team were called but were not able to save him, the official said.
Mr Karimi Nasseri, believed to have been born in 1945, lived in the airport’s Terminal 1 from 1988 until 2006, first in legal limbo because he lacked residency papers and later by choice, according to French media reports.
He had been living in the airport again in recent weeks, the airport official said.
His saga inspired The Terminal starring Tom Hanks, and a French film.
