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Pera Palas'ta Gece Yarısı

Midnight at the Pera Palace (Pera Palas'ta Gece Yarısı)

TV Series · 2022–2024 · 14 people

Pera Palas'ta Gece Yarısı (Midnight at the Pera Palace) is one of Netflix's Turkish originals, a time-travel series that blends drama, history and fantasy. Produced by Karga Seven Pictures, it is directed by Emre Şahin and written by Elif Usman. The series was inspired by Charles King's 2014 book Midnight at the Pera Palace: The Birth of Modern Istanbul. Its eight-episode first season launched worldwide on 3 March 2022, and after a renewal a second season followed on 12 September 2024, bringing the total to two seasons and 16 episodes.

The story unfolds at the real Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul. Esra, a young journalist assigned to write about the hotel, is suddenly thrust into the past and must stop a plot that could change the fate of modern Turkey. The series moves between occupied-era Istanbul and the present, pairing a period drama with a suspenseful race to protect history. Hazal Kaya, Tansu Biçer, Selahattin Paşalı and James Chalmers star, and Engin Hepileri is also named in the cast.

The series is known in Germany as Mitternacht im Pera Palace and in Spanish-speaking markets as Medianoche en el Pera Palace.

DirectorEmre Şahin
Production companyKarga Seven Pictures
NetworkNetflix
Midnight at the Pera Palace (Pera Palas'ta Gece Yarısı) Midnight at the Pera Palace (Pera Palas'ta Gece Yarısı)

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Cast

Hazal Kaya Hazal Kaya Actor · 36 years old Selahattin Paşalı Selahattin Paşalı Actor · 36 years old James Chalmers Clare Louise Frost Yasemin Szawlowski Tansu Biçer Tansu Biçer Actor · 48 years old Engin Hepileri Engin Hepileri Actor · 48 years old Tülin Özen Tülin Özen Actor · 46 years old Jordan J Gallagher Ergün Metin Hakan Dinçkol Hakan Dinçkol Actor · 44 years old Furkan Kalabalık Ediz Fatih Özer Andy Boyns

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Through different eyes

Series Binger A series devotee tracking character arcs, cast chemistry and season pacing.

Putting time travel and period drama under the roof of one hotel gives the show a head start. Hazal Kaya carries Esra's bewilderment and resolve convincingly, and her dynamics with Selahattin Paşalı and Tansu Biçer keep things lively. The eight-episode first season flows well enough to finish in one sitting. The two-and-a-half-year wait between seasons does cool things down, though; going into season two you may need to rewatch to remember where everyone stood. Sixteen episodes in total is a sensible length for this kind of story to end before it sags.

History & Society Lens Asks about the period, the social background and what the work reflects.

The show's most interesting move is using a real place, the Pera Palace Hotel, as a doorway into occupied-era Istanbul. Drawing on Charles King's book about the birth of modern Istanbul makes the choice meaningful: the hotel stands like a witness to the years when a city changed its identity. Still, the time-travel frame risks turning a historical backdrop into an adventure stage. Hanging the fate of modern Turkey on a single plot is exciting, but it flattens the period's complicated social fabric. Worth watching as something that sparks curiosity about history, not as a substitute for a history book.

Action & Thriller Fan Puts pace, tension and set pieces first; little patience for slow drama.

A journalist dropped into the past to stop a conspiracy: on paper, that's a pure thriller setup. The period atmosphere looks great, but the pace isn't the same in every episode; the costumed conversations sometimes run long and the race loses its pulse. The real thrills come when Esra is racing the clock. Measured tension for anyone expecting straight action, more fun for history lovers.

These are not reader reviews: they are short editorial takes written from different viewer perspectives with AI assistance. Reader reviews are below.

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