The Terminal True Story: everything the film changes

The True Story Behind Steven Spielberg The terminal is as unbelievable as the premise of the film it inspired. The 2004 film stars Tom Hanks as Viktor Navorski, a man from an Eastern European country. When he lands at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport while his country is in the midst of a military coup, Viktor’s travel situation becomes dicey and he is stranded at the airport for months after his passport is deemed invalid. It’s a fun premise that’s perhaps not as strange as it seems.

Viktor Navorski seems like a friendly soul as he changes the lives of the airport workers around him. Despite the political conflict in his own country, Viktor’s American deviance proves a comforting contrast. What makes it more interesting is that it was based on the true story of a man who was similarly trapped in an airport terminal for a long time. However, many changes were made to that man’s origins and situation for Viktor’s fictional story – but the true story that inspired The terminal is equally interesting.

The terminal was inspired by the story of Mehran Karimi Nasseri

The Terminal Man Offers More Context Behind the Terminal’s True History

Mehran Karimi Nasseri was the real-life inspiration behind The terminal. The Iranian refugee resided in the departure lounge of Terminal 1 at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport for a shocking 18 years. Due to his unconventional housing situation, Nasseri became something of a celebrity, and his 2004 autobiography, The terminal man (co-written by British writer Andrew Donkin), offers more context behind OTterminalthe true story.

The book claims that Nasseri was born in Iran but moved to the UK when he was 28. The British stay took place in 1973, when Nasseri was studying three years in Yugoslavia at the University of Bradford. With protests against the Shah of Iran becoming more widespread in the 1970s, Nasseri added that he was expelled from his home country in 1977 for engaging in such anti-state activities.

Tortured by the Iranian intelligence agency Savak, Nasseri was apparently granted refugee status by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Belgium, which also allowed him to seek refuge in other European countries. He claims that while traveling between France and the United Kingdom in 1988, his briefcase containing his documents was stolen.. Unable to reach his destination, he spent his days living in the terminal. Calling himself “Sir Alfred”, he became a local icon for Parisians.

Due to its central premise, The terminal is one of the most incredible films based on true stories. But it has very loose influence from Nasseri’s life, as it does not incorporate his origins in Iran. Viktor Navorski is shown as Coming from a politically turbulent country like Iranbut nowhere is he mentioned as being politically involved.

Unlike Nasseri, Viktor does not lose his papers; his passport is seized by the Customs Department because the United States government does not recognize his home as a legitimate state. It’s just Viktor’s bad luck that he was flying to America while a military coup was taking place.

Mehran Karimi Nasseri’s claims have been disputed

Some have suggested he was never deported

Contrary to Nasseri’s claims, the media offered different perspectives on why he was trapped in Paris, further complicating the situation. The terminalthe true story. In a detailed 2004 profile in The GuardianLondon filmmaker Paul Berczeller corroborated his sources in Iran and discovered that Nasseri took part in a student strike at the University of Tehran in 1970.

The reason for the strike was to protest against new university regulations. As expected of totalitarianism in Iran at that time, Savak questioned all students involved, including Nasseri. The matter was resolved a few hours later and “there was no confiscation of his passport or deportation.”

Nasseri’s book also mentions how people suspected him of lying about losing his documents. The theory suggests he just sent his documents to Belgium whilst on board a ferry to the UK. The New York Times mentions that Nasseri arrived in London in 1988 as intended. But here, he was unable to present his passport to immigration officials and was returned to France.

At the French airport, Nasseri was once again unable to prove his refugee status or show his passport. Thus, although it is clear that Nasseri was detained in Paris, the reasons behind the loss of his documents remain unclear.

Names and places were changed in the true story of the terminal

The Terminal is not a factual biopic

The New York Times reported that Steven Spielberg bought the rights to the story from Mehran Karimi Nasseri while the man was still living at the Paris airport. However, unlike other biopics directed by Spielberg, The terminal does not depend on a factual and replaces Nasseri with the fictional character Viktor Navorski. The setting has also changed, from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport to New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport.

The supporting characters, played by Catherine Zeta-Jones, Stanley Tucci, Diego Luna and Zoe Saldaña, are also completely fictional. The terminal man delves into the unlikely friendships Nasseri made with airport workers, but the film doesn’t include any real-life parallels.

Krakozhia is not a real country

Viktor’s homeland in the terminal was fictional

Although the true story behind THE terminal traces its origins to Iran, the film involves the invented nation of Krakozhia. Like other fictional film countries and their obvious real-world counterparts, Krakozhia is clearly inspired by the Eastern Bloc states of the Soviet Union. The military conflict in Krakozhia may more specifically resemble the conflict in Czechoslovakia, the landlocked European state that later split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia after repeated internal tensions.

The words that Viktor Navorski speaks in his native Krakozhian also resemble Bulgarian and Russian. A scene involving an English guide to Krakozhians adds further proof of Russian influence, as this book was also written in Russian.

A French human rights lawyer helped Mehran Karimi Nasseri

The terminal left out an important ally of the real airport man

What The terminal What it notably omits from the true story is that Mehran Karimi Nasseri received legal help from French human rights lawyer Christian Bourget. The terminal man sheds light on their unstable professional relationship. Although the lawyer did his best to offer Nasseri legal refuge, his plans never came to fruition as Nasseri was determined to remain only in the United Kingdom under his preferred name, “Sir Alfred Mehran”.

Belgium even agreed to grant him refuge under the supervision of a social worker in 1995, but Nasseri rejected the offer because he was still determined to reach the UK. Nasseri’s autobiography jokingly recalls how this rejection frustrated Bourget.

The real “Terminal Man” lived at the airport for 18 years

The Terminal Movie Timeline Is Much Shorter Than the True Story

In The terminalViktor manages to leave the airport after nine months, as the war in Krakozhia ends at that time. In reality, Nasseri resided in Charles de Gaulle Terminal 1 for 18 years, from 1988 to 2006. His daily activities included smoking his golden pipe, eating a meal at McDonald’s (often hosted by strangers), writing in his diary, and listening to the radio (via HQ).

A red bench on the first floor of the terminal was his favorite place to sit. One thing the film gets right: His fast food consumption and curious exploration of the airport are hilariously played by Tom Hanks’ character in The terminal.

Where is Mehran Karimi Nasseri from the true terminal story now?

The man who inspired Viktor Navorski has passed away

After residing in Terminal 1 for 18 years Mehran Karimi Nasseri was transferred from Charles de Gaulle Airport in July 2006 (through Associated Press). He was hospitalized in Paris, although his health conditions were never specified. A year later, Nasseri was invited to reside in a homeless shelter in France. He continued to stay in these shelters, but in 2022 he returned to live at Charles de Gaulle.

A few weeks after his return, Nasseri died on November 12, 2022, after suffering a heart attack. Aged around 76 or 77, the man whose true story inspired The terminal passed away in Terminal 2F of the airport.

Why these terminal changes were good

Spielberg paid for the lifetime rights to Nasseri’s story before making it into an original film

According to The Guardian, Steven Spielberg purchased the life rights to Mehran Karimi Nasseri before making the film, only to decide to rewrite it as an original story. Although there are many people who complain about inaccurate films supposedly “based on true stories,” Speilberg was wise to use only selected elements of Nasseri’s story to The terminal. The premise itself is the truly intriguing part of the story, with the idea of ​​a man stuck in an airport opening up a number of interesting possibilities.

However, the film Spielberg wanted to make and the story of Nasseri’s life were two very different things. The terminal is the story of a charming and captivating character who makes the most of his dilemma, building a unique life and making friends while trapped in this unusual situation.

Regardless of whether the allegations against Nasseri are true or not, they add a complication to the story. The idea that he may have lied about why he left and orchestrated why he got stuck at the airport could be worth exploring in a film, but it’s a different kind of film. While The terminal may not be the most impressive of Spielberg and Hanks’ films, it’s a fun dramedy that tells its own story that probably couldn’t have been imagined without Nasseri’s own experiences.

The terminal vs. Other Tom Hanks films based on true stories

Tom Hanks played many real-life people

The terminal is not the only film starring Tom Hanks that is based on a true story, as this has become a trend in the actor’s filmography. Throughout his career, Hanks has participated in numerous projects based on real-life elements, some stretching the truth more than others. When it comes to The terminalrepresents one of the least factually accurate films, while also featuring a performance from Hanks that is more comical and less grounded.

Real-life people Tom Hanks played:

It’s more identifiable with films like Elvis and Saving Mr. Bankstwo films that expand the truth into a more entertaining story. The real story behind Elvis it makes Hanks’ character, Colonel Tom Parker, more of a villain, while ignoring some of the darker aspects of Elvis Presley himself, as is typically the case in biopics. Similarly, Saving Mr. Banks stars Hanks as Walt Disney as he butts heads with author PL Travers as they adapt Mary Poppins. Hanks is charming in the role and the film ignores the real animosity behind the collaboration between Disney and Travers.

While The terminal finds Hanks’ character in a difficult situation, many of his films depict real-life survival stories. In these cases, the films have a much more serious tone than what is seen in The terminal. Apollo 13 stars Hanks as astronaut Jim Lovell during an abandoned mission to the moon in which he and his crew faced death. Hanks also takes the lead role in Captain Phillips as the captain of the ship who is taken prisoner by Somali pirates.

In these two cases, the films are much more grounded representations of real-life scenarios, with stories closer to the facts. Hanks’ performance is pivotal in both films, as he is able to play grounded characters in life-or-death situations who are convincingly able to remain level-headed and courageous.