Melina Mercouri
Actor · Died March 6, 1994, aged 73 · Athens, Greece
Maria Amalia "Melina" Mercouri (Greek: Μαρία Αμαλία "Μελίνα" Μερκούρη, 18 October 1920 – 6 March 1994) was a Greek actress, singer, activist, and politician. She came from a prominent political family for multiple generations. She received an Academy Award nomination and won a French Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Award for her performance in the film Never on Sunday (1960) and an Italian David di Donatello for Topkapi. Mercouri was also nominated for one Tony Award, three Golden Globes, and two BAFTA Awards in her acting career. In 1987 she was awarded a special prize in the first edition of the Europe Theatre Prize. Mercouri was a member of the Hellenic Parliament, elected as a representative of PASOK. In October 1981, she became the first female Minister of Culture and Sports. She has the longest tenure of any of Greece's Ministers of Culture, having served from 1981 to 1989, and then from 1993 until her death in 1994, during PASOK governments. Mercouri's political activism included her long campaign for the return of the Parthenon Marbles. One of her greatest achievements was the establishment of the European Capitals of Culture, with Athens chosen as the first capital in 1985. Description above from the Wikipedia article Melina Mercouri, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- October 18, 1920
- March 6, 1994 (aged 73)
- Athens, Greece
- Actor
- 8 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
What are Melina Mercouri's films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Morality.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 8
A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 1 · Dark 4
Grounded 3 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1
A split, not a type: Gentle 1 · Charged 3 · Intense 4
Steady 2 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 0
A split, not a type: Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 1
Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0
Casual 2 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 0
A split, not a type: Easy watch 3 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 5
A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 1
Roles they play
Usually the Shapeshifter: 3 of 7 analyzed roles.
Show the 7 rolesHide the roles
- Tricksteras Katerina in He Who Must Die (1957)
- Heroas Ilya in Never on Sunday (1960)
- Tricksteras Ilya in Never on Sunday (1960)
- Shapeshifteras Phaedra in Phaedra (1962)
- Shapeshifteras Elizabeth Lipp in Topkapi (1964)
- Heroas Maria in 10:30 P.M. Summer (1966)
- Shapeshifteras Aurora in A Man Could Get Killed (1966)
Moods and endings
- Happy1
- Bittersweet2
- Tragic2
- Ambiguous3
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Melina Mercouri's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Melina Mercouri's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
22 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page; 18 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Lilly's Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)
A Dream of Passion (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)
Nasty Habits (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
Once Is Not Enough(1975)
Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films
Songs of Fire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
The Rehearsal (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
Promise at Dawn (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)
Gaily, Gaily (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)
10:30 P.M. Summer(1966)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
A Man Could Get Killed(1966)
Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films
The Uninhibited (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)
Topkapi(1964)
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
The Victors(1963)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
Phaedra(1962)
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films
The Last Judgment (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)
Long Live Henry IV... Long Live Love! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)
Never on Sunday(1960)
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films
The Law (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)
The Gypsy and the Gentleman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)
He Who Must Die(1957)
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films
Stella (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)
la loi (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
Star power in the 94th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 22 titles, 21 of them dated from 1955 to 2002; peak year 1963.
Biggest box office
Once Is Not Enough (1975)
Highest rated
Never on Sunday (1960)
Most popular right now
Topkapi (1964)
Film career
Peak 1963 · at the high point of their film career. Top draw in 3 MovieCove titles. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 1955Screen debut· Stella
- 1955First top-billed film· Stella
- 1964Career best· Topkapi
Billing
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.
How do Melina Mercouri's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 73rd percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 68th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up3
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th1
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
6 of their 8 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Crowd Pleaser6
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the acting 74/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles; fans 82, detractors 35. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Melina Mercouri work with?
People who share at least 2 of Melina Mercouri's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jules Dassin shares the most, 5.
Directors
- Jules DassinShared titles: 10:30 P.M. Summer (1966), Topkapi (1964), Phaedra (1962), Never on Sunday (1960), He Who Must Die (1957)See all 5 shared titles with Jules Dassin
Actors
- George HamiltonShared titles: Once Is Not Enough (1975), The Victors (1963)See all 2 shared titles with George Hamilton
- Grégoire AslanShared titles: A Man Could Get Killed (1966), He Who Must Die (1957)See all 2 shared titles with Grégoire Aslan
- Romy SchneiderShared titles: 10:30 P.M. Summer (1966), The Victors (1963)See all 2 shared titles with Romy Schneider
- Titos VandisShared titles: Topkapi (1964), Never on Sunday (1960)See all 2 shared titles with Titos Vandis
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Roger DwyreShared titles: 10:30 P.M. Summer (1966), Topkapi (1964), Phaedra (1962), Never on Sunday (1960), He Who Must Die (1957)See all 5 shared titles with Roger Dwyre
- Jacques NatteauShared titles: Phaedra (1962), Never on Sunday (1960), He Who Must Die (1957)See all 3 shared titles with Jacques Natteau
- Gábor PogányShared titles: 10:30 P.M. Summer (1966), A Man Could Get Killed (1966)See all 2 shared titles with Gábor Pogány
- Manos HatzidakisShared titles: Topkapi (1964), Never on Sunday (1960)See all 2 shared titles with Manos Hatzidakis
