In an exclusive interview for Episode Magazine’s MIPTV 2024 issue, we conducted an interview with Doğukan Güngör, the talented actor behind the compelling character Fatih in the hit Turkish series, One Love. With the show consistently ranking among the top 3 most viewed and discussed TV series in Türkiye for the past two seasons, Doğukan Güngör delved into the significance of his role and the series within the context of his career.
One Love has consistently ranked among the top 3 most viewed and discussed TV series in Türkiye for the past two seasons. How do you perceive the character Fatih and the series One Love within the context of your career, and what significance does it hold for you?
Yes, as you said, it became a project that attracted a lot of attention. One of the most important motivations for many actors and performers is to see their work in demand; in this sense, we are very happy and it motivates us. One Love was a turning point in my career. The character of Fatih made me look at a character I had never played before with different eyes.
Doğukan Güngör: “I think Fatih’s intense love for the person he was with and his way of living it so deeply accelerated their separation at some point.”
Fatih is the only character who was criticized by almost all the viewers in the first season. Due to the great influence of his family and of course his own mistakes, his marriage was always in crisis. In the second season, he decides to create a different life for himself. How do you think all this affects Fatih? How would you describe Fatih’s changes in terms of the way he changed in the two seasons?
Time changes everything and everyone. It was actually a subject I experienced with my own father – marriage. I grew up observing the differences between his first and second marriage. You don’t make the same mistakes in your second marriage that you did in your first. In my opinion, life is about experiences and learning lessons from those experiences. I think Fatih’s intense love for the person he was with and his way of living it so deeply accelerated their separation at some point. Because living some things to an excessive degree also brings about sudden endings.
One Love isn’t like those works where two characters take center stage and side characters simply develop the plot. It shows us the characters’ journeys, their dilemmas, and their decisions. This focus on a well-rounded cast makes the series so strong. What kind of experience is it for you to be part of such a talented group in a multi-character story?
It’s great. I love all my co-workers dearly and I feel lucky to be working with them.
The series’ international sales are also thriving. There’s an important event coming up at MIPTV. How are you feeling about MIPTV? Also, what were the most interesting comments you’ve received about One Love from international audiences?
It is very pleasing that the series has attracted attention globally. I think MIPTV is also an important bridge at this point.
In its first season, One Love tackled the contrasting worldviews of two families, exploring their interactions and the characters’ reactions to unfolding events. It was the first time we saw the issues in Turkish society so openly in a TV series. Do you think the first season was challenging for audiences abroad in this respect?
No, we can also exemplify the conservative-secular distinction between other opposing poles somewhere else in the world. If we can convey the idea of having different races, having completely different ideologies, but being able to meet in an intersection set within these differences and accepting each other with our colors, then I guess I did my job right as an actor.
This exclusive interview with Doğukan Güngör was published in Episode’s MIPTV 2024 issue.
