Hazal Kaya

Hazal Kaya, born Leyla Hazal Kaya on October 1, 1990, in Konya, Turkey, began her journey into the arts at an early age, taking ballet and violin lessons for seven years. Her parents, both lawyers, divorced when she was seven. She attended Gaziosmanpaşa elementary school and later graduated from the Liceo Italiano di Istanbul in 2009 before enrolling at Istanbul Bilgi University for higher education. Kaya is multilingual, fluent in Turkish, Italian, and English, and has reportedly studied German. She embarked on her acting career in 2006, initially with a guest role in the fantasy series Acemi Cadı, a Turkish adaptation of “Sabrina The Teenage Witch.” She also appeared in Sila (2006) and Taşların Sırrı (2006). Her first significant role came in 2007 as Özge in the series Genco, followed by her breakthrough in 2008 as Nihal Ziyagil in “Forbidden Love” (Aşk-ı Memnu), a popular adaptation of a classic novel.

Kaya’s career progressed significantly with her leading role as Feriha Yilmaz in the first two seasons of “Adını Feriha Koydum” (2011–2012). This series achieved high TV ratings in Turkey and garnered critical acclaim. During this period, she also engaged in commercial work, appearing in Bingo detergent commercials alongside her mother. In 2012, she took on the lead role of Emine in the historical series “Son Yaz: Balkanlar 1912,” though the series concluded after a few episodes due to low ratings. She continued to undertake lead roles in television, including Azra Özak in A.Ş.K. (2013) and Maral Erdem in Maral: En Güzel Hikayem (2015). Her film credits include a minor role in “Çalgı Çengi” (2011) and later leading roles in “Ay Büyürken Uyuyamam” (2011), “Bu Son Olsun” (2012), “İtirazım Var” (2014), “Kırık Kalpler Bankası” (2015), and “Benden Ne Olur?” (2022).

After a brief hiatus, Kaya returned to television in 2017 with the leading role of Filiz Elibol Aktan in “Bizim Hikaye” (Our Story), the Turkish adaptation of the American series “Shameless.” Her portrayal received positive reviews, with her performance being noted as remarkable, leading to multiple awards for this role. In 2021, she starred as Gece / Güneş in Misafir. Her most recent notable work includes the Netflix series “Midnight at the Pera Palace” (2022-2024), where she plays the dual lead role of Esra / Peride, and the upcoming TV series Sorgu (2024) as Cihan Manoglu. Throughout her career, Kaya has consistently been recognized as one of Turkey’s highest-paid actresses and has received various accolades for her contributions to Turkish television and film.