The death of Mehran Karimi Nasseri on Wednesday left Hollywood legend Tom Hanks in a melancholy mood. Following his death, Hanks paid a heartfelt tribute to him.
Mehran, an Iranian refugee, made his home in the departure terminal at Charles de Gaulle Airport after losing his refugee passport and having his plea to enter France denied.
After being denied entry into the United States, he became the inspiration for the 2004 film “The Terminal,” which starred Tom Hanks as an Eastern European man forced to live in the terminal of John F. Kennedy Airport.
Tom shared a photo on his Facebook page of Mehran in an airport setting, next to an advertisement for the film The Terminal, which also starred Catherine Zeta-Jones.
“Charles de Gaulle’s Mehran Karimi Nasseri, better known as Alfred, passed away recently, and we are grieved to learn of his departure,” said the actor who played Forrest Gump in a moving goodbye to his friend. “The airport isn’t too bad,” he said. Mehran was the only one who genuinely grasped the idea. Hanx.”
Tom disabled the comment option for his post, but it still attracted a lot of attention from readers, garnering over 21,000 likes in less than a quarter-hour.
Mehran was forced to live in the airport since he had nowhere else to go after misplacing his documents and accidentally shipping it to Belgium. He had planned to seek refuge in the United Kingdom after being expelled from Iran for participating in protests. He even called himself Sir Alfred Mehran.
From 1988 through 2006, he lived at the airport. He was forcibly taken from the airport in 2006 because he needed medical attention. He then spent some time in a hotel before being relocated to a homeless shelter in Paris.
Mehran returned to living in the airport after some time had passed. Unfortunately, he suffered a heart attack while there and died this past Saturday at the age of 76.
Throughout his life, he was frequently seen studying economics in the airport’s departure lounge, where he also got food on a daily basis from travellers passing through.
