Melisa Sözen
Melisa Sözen is a Turkish actress.
Biography
Starting her professional career at the very early age of 15, she studied in theatre department of Pera Fine Arts High School. Sözen starred in many Turkish TV hits including Çemberimde Gül Oya, Bıçak Sırtı, Bir Bulut Olsam, Muhteşem Yüzyıl, Kırmızı Oda and Şubat. She played two different roles in the surreal series Şubat alongside her ex-husband Alican Yücesoy.After working with Turkey's most prominent directors in movies like Av Mevsimi, Bir Varmış Bir Yokmuş and Cenneti Beklerken. Sözen attracted international attention with her phenomenal acting in Nuri Bilge Ceylan's Palme d'Or winning Kış Uykusu in 2014. Sözen frequently was invited as a jury member to many international film festivals including, International Istanbul Film Festival, Sarajevo Film Festival and .
Following her role in the 3rd Season of Éric Rochant's influential series Le bureau des légendes in 2017, Sözen moved to Paris for a while and worked on her French. Her first leading role in a French movie came in 2019 with Damien veut changer le monde.
With Kenan İmirzalıoğlu, she played in Blutv's detective series Alef about history of theology. Sözen appeared in Netflix series Biz Kimden Kaçıyorduk Anne?, the adaptation of the Perihan Mağden's novel. She had leading role in an episode of mini series 7 Yüz with ensemble cast.
Achieving an extraordinary level of critical success in her homeland by winning both Theater Critics Association's and Film Critics Association's awards for the actress in a leading role in 2015 with her performances in play Kalp Düğümü .
In 2025, Sözen was questioned by Istanbul police on suspicion of "promoting terrorist propaganda", following her role in Le Bureau des Légendes, in which her character wore an outfit similar to that of the YPG, designated as a terrorist organisation in Turkey. Sözen, who was not detained, denied that the costume was a deliberate reference to the group and observed that the programme had not been broadcast in Turkey.