Özge Özder

Özge Özder — Biography

Elif Özge Özder was born in Ankara to a family of Circassian descent and first encountered theatre during her years at Özel Yükseliş College. In the 1996 conservatory exams she earned a scholarship place at Bilkent University as well as a high-scoring spot at Hacettepe University's Ankara State Conservatory; after graduating in 2000 she began her professional career with BKM and has performed with the Istanbul City Theatres since 2005. Her portrayal of Natasha in the play Üç Kız Kardeş brought her the Bedia Muvahhit award along with Afife Jale and Sadri Alışık nominations, and she was nominated again for Afife Jale for playing Lena in Leonce ile Lena.

Her first major screen breakthrough came as Lale in Haziran Gecesi between 2004 and 2006, followed by the icy Princess Cavidan in Dudaktan Kalbe (2007-2009). She went on to play Emel in Umutsuz Ev Kadınları, Kıvılcım in Mucize Doktor, Derya in Sadakatsiz and Sara Kohen in Gecenin Ucunda, before taking the title role in Leydi Di in 2024.

In her personal life, she married actor Tansel Öngel in 2007, a marriage that ended in 2010; she then married musician Sinan Güleryüz in 2018, and the couple's daughter, Eva Luna, was born in 2021, with the two also recording songs together. In December 2025 she said she and her husband had filed suit after narrowly surviving a car malfunction, and in March 2026 she drew attention for remarks about unfair treatment of women in the industry.