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Boran Kuzum will make history tomorrow as the first Turkish actor to star in the main cast of a US-produced Netflix series.
His new project, a crime comedy titled "Big Mistakes," premieres globally on April 9, 2026, and this launch marks a significant moment for talent from Türkiye in the international entertainment market.
Emmy Award winner Dan Levy and Rachel Sennott created the series. The plot follows two siblings who find themselves caught in the middle of organized crime. Kuzum plays Yusuf, a character central to the criminal world that drives the story.
The series at a glance:
Boran Kuzum joined the project after a successful Zoom audition.
Originally, the script featured a Russian or Eastern European character. The writers changed the character's background to Turkish after they cast Kuzum.
In an interview with Brut, Kuzum explained the shift. "They called me and said, 'We wanted to make him Turkish.' I was like 'Why?' and they said 'Your accent,'" Kuzum recalled laughingly.
Kuzum also suggested the name Yusuf for the role. This change allowed the actor to bring more of his own identity to the performance. During high-tension scenes, he occasionally improvised in his native tongue.
"When we reached that certain level one day, I started yelling in Turkish on set in the scene," Kuzum stated. His co-stars, Dan Levy and Taylor Ortega, adapted to these moments. The creators liked the energy and decided to keep the Turkish lines in the final cut.
The filming process involved many unexpected moments. Kuzum recalled shooting a scene in a truck one day where he truly found the character. He explained that "Yusuf’s reactions are always fun and unexpected." So, he just went with the flow, and his reactions were so funny that the scene took hours to finish because the cast could not stop laughing. Kuzum shared that he "cannot help but laugh when someone is laughing," so the team spent the day trying to finish the shoot between laughs.
This international debut represents the fulfillment of a long-term goal for Kuzum.
He described the premiere as a "dream come true" because he had worked to achieve this since he began acting 11 years ago in Türkiye. He believes the power of acting lies in "making people accept the differences between people" and helping them "empathize with all the possibilities of life."
He graduated from the Istanbul University State Conservatory and rose to fame as the Greek officer Leon in the historical drama "Wounded Love" (Vatanim Sensin).
His previous work also includes the Netflix series "The Protector" (Hakan: Muhafiz) and the digital series "Respect" (Saygi). He appeared in the television series "Mothers and Mothers" (Analar ve Anneler) and films such as "Cingoz Recai" and "Doom of Love" (Askin Kiyameti). He also performed on stage in "The Seagull" (Marti).
Boran Kuzum is now ready to reach more cultures through his role in "Big Mistakes."
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