Samuel Hadida, Veteran Distributor and ‘Resident Evil’ Producer, Dies at 64

Samuel Hadida, the veteran film distributor who produced the Resident Evil movies and features for director Tony Scott and Claude Lelouch, has died. He was 64.

A fixture at film markets and festivals around the world, Hadida died unexpectedly Monday at UCLA Medical Center in Santa Monica following a short illness, his brother, Victor, announced. 

Born in Casablanca, Morocco, Hadida and his brother owned and managed Metropolitan FilmExport, a leading French distributor of American indies that they founded in 1978 with their father, David.

As a producer, Hadida collaborated with Scott on True Romance (1993) and Domino (2005); with Constantin Film on the Resident Evil and Silent Hill movies; and, more recently, with Lelouch on Un+Une and The Best Years, the forthcoming sequel to the filmmaker’s Oscar-winning classic A Man and a Woman.

In the world of independent film distribution, Metropolitan supported top directors like Scott, Lelouch, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Terrence Malick, Roger Avary and Christophe Gans, and its marketing and original release campaigns were often picked up by other distributors around the world. 

Metropolitan has had long-term output arrangements with New Line Cinema (for films including the Lord of the Rings trilogy), Lionsgate (the Hunger Games franchise) and DreamWorks. 

“Sammy’s passion and humor were infectious, and his larger-than-life presence will certainly be missed,” his brother said. “We are committed to honoring his life by bringing to fruition the numerous development projects under the Davis Films banner that Samuel so loved as well as the upcoming productions that were so important to him.”

Hadida also is survived by his wife, Maryse Claire; their children Laurent, Audrey and Aurelie; and grandchild Sasha. Arrangements are pending.

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