Biography of Meryem Uzerli
Meryem Uzerli is a popular Turkish-German model and actress, who gained worldwide fame for her role as Hürrem Sultan in the acclaimed Turkish TV series "Magnificent Century." Although the actress's filmography does not include many works, Meryem is considered one of the leading Turkish stars. Her popularity soared again with her role as Reyyan in the melodrama "Ru," which premiered in the spring of 2024.
Childhood, Youth, Family
Meryem Sahra was born in the summer of 1983 to a German-Turkish family of Ursula and Hussein Uzerli from the German city of Kassel. She is the youngest of four children.She has two older brothers, Denny and Christopher, who were born from her mother's first marriage. Her sister Canan was born from the second marriage, as was Meryem herself.
From an early age, she showed acting abilities, although she also considered becoming a police officer or a doctor. At the age of five, she appeared on the stage of a theater where her father's good friend was the artistic director.
Uzerli spent her school years in an institution with an in-depth study of the arts. She continued to act in school amateur productions and in performances on the professional theater stage.
In 2000, Meryem, surpassing about three hundred applicants, became a student at the Frese Drama Studio in Hamburg, where she studied acting. As one of the top graduates, she was invited to join the troupe of one of the Berlin theaters, where she took the stage in various roles.
Acting Career
Since 2008, Uzerli has appeared in German films. She played Madeline in the feature film "Menage A Trois," appeared in the TV series "Inga Lindström," portrayed a student in the film "Sterne über dem Eis," and played a stewardess in the drama "Journey of No Return." For this role, Meryem was awarded a special prize at the International Antalya Film Festival.The actress also appeared as Lina in the sports-crime series "We All Love Football" and played Ankel in the melodrama "Ein Fall für zwei."
Fame came to Meryem with the Turkish historical project "Magnificent Century," set during the Ottoman Empire under the rule of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
The main character, known worldwide as the Slavic slave Roxelana, was sought for two years. The producers of the series invited Uzerli to audition in Turkey; she was one of the last to audition, without high expectations.
However, many factors worked in her favor: her European appearance and even the fact that Meryem did not speak Turkish. Two weeks before the project's launch, she was confirmed for the lead role.
The work was challenging, and filming sometimes lasted until late at night. The actress later admitted that after three years of a grueling schedule, she completely lost herself and lived the life of Hürrem Sultan.
Although this role brought Meryem worldwide fame and numerous cinematic awards, at some point, she couldn't take it anymore. Work fatigue combined with personal life problems. Only a few episodes of the third season of "Magnificent Century" remained to be filmed when it became known that Uzerli had left for Berlin without warning.
She told the show's management over the phone that she was receiving treatment at a psychiatric clinic in a severe condition. This news shocked the producers, and the series' finale was urgently revised, with Vahide Perçin taking over as the older Hürrem Sultan.
The scandal lingered for a long time. It later emerged that Meryem had conflicts with the management regarding money. Allegedly, she was unhappy that Halit Ergenç was paid twice as much, which led her to retaliate against the producers. However, the main reason was a nervous breakdown.
She returned to Turkish cinema only at the end of 2014. A script for the dramatic TV series "Night Queen" was written specifically for her (and rewritten several times during filming), where she starred alongside Murat Yıldırım and Uğur Polat.
No expense was spared for the project's promotion, initially titled "The Scent of Love." Fans of Uzerli in various countries eagerly awaited its release. Unfortunately, the series did not achieve the success anticipated by the producers and was canceled after 15 episodes.
A more successful project was the dramatic film "My mother's wound" (2016), in which the actress played Maria. The script was written by Meryem's friend, Ozan Güven, with whom she starred in "Magnificent Century."
Uzerli also participated in the crime project "A bandit cannot rule the world," where she played the Russian spy Susan Elliot. Turkish critics wrote unfavorable reviews about the character, leading her to end her collaboration with the creators.
In 2017, Uzerli announced that she would only act in feature films. Her first such project was the comedy-action film "Recai the Shrewd," alongside Kenan İmirzalıoğlu. She also starred as the main character Sara in the thriller "The Hidden Face." However, both audiences and critics noted that Meryem was not as convincing in these films as she was in the role of Hürrem Sultan, and her new characters were disappointing.
Her performance was slightly better received in the arthouse drama "The Hive" (2019), where Uzerli portrayed the beekeeper Ayşe. Her character courageously embarked on a new business venture and dreamed of the day when honey from her apiary would be famous worldwide. However, her plans were disrupted by a massive bear invading her territory.
For this role, Uzerli received awards at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival for Best Actress and the Chelsea Film Festival for Best International Actress.
Alongside her acting career, Uzerli ventured into business, founding her own cosmetics brand, Meryem Cosmetics. She later opened a bakery in the German capital but had to close it a few years later due to the economic crisis in Europe.
Personal Life of Meryem Uzerli
The beautiful and vibrant actress quickly gained a large number of fans who are interested in her private life. As soon as she first appeared on screen as Hürrem Sultan, she was immediately rumored to be romantically involved with the lead male actor. However, Meryem was only connected to Halit Ergenç through the filming process.Meryem Uzerli's first love struck in college, where she met a young Turkish man named Özcan, who was also born in Germany. Their romance lasted for six years, and Meryem was happy until she found out that her chosen one had sold paparazzi pictures from their vacation together, accompanied by rude comments. Feeling insulted, she immediately cut off all communication with Özcan.
According to the actress, this trauma left her feeling withdrawn and introverted for a long time, both psychologically and physically weak. In this state, she met businessman Can Ateş. Meryem decided he was the love of her life, not even considering what kind of person he was. Knowing almost nothing about him, she dove headlong into a new relationship.
The passionate affair, which lasted about a year, brought Meryem more suffering than joy. Can turned out to be not as ideal as she had imagined. He could leave her alone in an unfamiliar city without money, simply get in the car, and drive away.
When the actress became pregnant and shared the news with Ateş, he confronted her with the fact: "I don't need a child; I already have two. You will have an abortion." He persuaded Meryem that he loved her, but now was not the time for a child—yet she no longer believed him.One of my acquaintances once said to me: 'Are you crazy? At least start by Googling him.' I was shocked. This person added: 'He will harm you. He is a playboy who enjoys spending time with beautiful women.'
Realizing she was on the brink of suicide, Meryem fled to Germany, to her parents, and checked into a psychiatric clinic. She did not have an abortion and in February 2014, she gave birth to her daughter Lara.
The actress never married, although she had close relationships with other men. For example, she dated Turkish actor Ozan Güven, who played Rüstem in "Magnificent Century," for about a year. Later, they played husband and wife in the melodrama "My mother's wound." Even after parting ways with Ozan, Meryem spoke of him as a compassionate person who helped her through a difficult period in her life and remained her friend.
Then the actress met Turkish entrepreneur Alp Özcan and spent a vacation with him in France. The romance was short-lived. Another suitor was actor Çağlar Ertuğrul. Rumor has it that for Meryem's beautiful eyes, he broke up with his fiancée and proposed to Meryem. However, the wedding never took place, and their relationship ended a few months later.
When her daughter Lara turned seven, it became known that the actress gave birth to a sister for Lara, named Lily Koi. Her father is an American businessman, whose name the actress does not disclose.
In love with Meryem, the man decided to stay in Europe. For some time, the couple lived together, and Meryem's partner managed to befriend Lara. They planned a wedding, which had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022, Meryem announced that she had separated from the father of her second daughter, and he returned to his homeland.
Meryem Uzerli Now
In the spring of 2024, a new Turkish project starring Meryem Uzerli premiered. Her character, Reyan, a restaurant owner, met a young man much younger than herself. Despite the fact that Uzer is only 18 and Reyan is already 38, the love between them was the most passionate and sincere.The eventful TV series "Ru" received high ratings in Turkey and earned many positive reviews from viewers and critics. It was recently announced that filming will continue at the end of 2024 and into early 2025. Fans will be able to see their favorite characters again and discover the continuation of their story in the vibrant performances of Meryem Uzerli and Burak Berkay Akgül.
Interesting Facts
- Meryem Uzerli was a teenager when her mother was diagnosed with early-stage leukemia. Her mother lost 40 kilograms and spent several months in the hospital. During most of this time, her daughter was with her: during the day, Meryem went to school and then returned to her mother. Fortunately, Ursula recovered. Her mother's illness affected her so deeply that since then, she has volunteered during all her vacations, spending a lot of time with sick children in the clinic where her mother was treated. The actress believes that this experience taught her a lot.
- The actress loves reading, cooking various dishes, and traveling the most. She always carries psychology books with her and studies them whenever she has free time. Meryem also enjoys watching documentaries about famous personalities, especially actresses, such as Romy Schneider.
- Uzerli admits that she wakes up with a strong feeling of hunger in the morning, so she prefers a hearty breakfast. During the day, she mainly eats fish, which she loves and, when she has free time, cooks herself. In the evening, she often orders dishes from restaurants because she gets very tired during the day.
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