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“Hugh Hudson was the fulcrum around which ‘Chariots of Fire’ was built,” David Puttnam, the film’s producer, wrote on Twitter after Mr. Hudson’s death.

“I think David Puttnam chose me because he sensed that I’d relate to the themes of class and racial prejudice,” Mr. Hudson told The Guardian in 2012.

To play Liddell and Abrahams, Mr. Puttnam refused to cast stars; instead, he chose Ian Charleson and Ben Cross, who were both best known for their television work.

Mr. Puttnam was one of that film’s producers.

When “The Crown” depicts the film winning a best picture Oscar, we hear the producer David Puttnam thank the Al-Fayeds “for putting their money where my mouth was,” and the elder Al-Fayed, watching with Johnson, dances with glee.