Uğur Yücel graduated from the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory's Theater department and began his professional career in 1977. During his years at the conservatory, he had the opportunity to work with many important figures such as Yıldız Kenter, Melih Cevdet Anday, Sabahattin Kudret Aksal, Haldun Taner, Ahmet Gülhan, Şener Şen, Ertem Eğilmez, and Yavuz Turgul. He gained great acclaim for his role as Ali Nazik in "Selamsız Bandosu" and especially in "Muhsin Bey" (1987). He received the 'Best Supporting Actor' award at the Antalya Film Festival for his role in "Muhsin Bey" and the 'Best Supporting Actor' award from the Cinema Writers Association for the 1988 film "Arabesk." In the 1996 film "Eşkıya," he once again shared the lead role with Şener Şen and earned appreciation for his role as Cumali.

In addition to directing films and series like "İkinci Bahar" (1999), "Hayatımın Kadınısın" (2006), "Ejder Kapanı" (2009), and "Benim Dünyam" (2013), he both wrote and directed "Yazı Tura" (2003).

Furthermore, he appeared on TV screens in series like "Hırsız Polis" (2005), "İçerde" (2016), "Kırmızı Oda" (2021), and "Uysallar" (2022), and also played a role in the production of the music for the film "Gemide" (1999).