Halit Ergenç

Halit Ergenç — Biography

Halit Ahmet Ergenç was born on 30 April 1970 in Istanbul, the son of actor and musician Mehmet Sait Ergenç. After finishing Beşiktaş Atatürk Anatolian High School, he enrolled in naval architecture at Istanbul Technical University, but left after two years to study opera and musical theatre acting at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. He made his stage debut in 1996 with the Dormen Theatre production of the musical Kral ve Ben.

On television he first drew attention as Devran in Zerda (2002) and Sinan Karahan in Aliye (2004), while the role of Onur Aksal in Binbir Gece (2006) brought him international stardom. His portrayal of Sultan Suleiman I in Muhteşem Yüzyıl (2011) became the defining performance of his career, and in Vatanım Sensin (2016) he starred as Lieutenant Colonel Cevdet opposite his wife, actress Bergüzar Korel. His film credits include Babam ve Oğlum (2005), Devrim Arabaları (2008) and Dersimiz: Atatürk (2010), in which he played Atatürk. More recently he appeared in the series Babil (2020) and Rise of Empires: Ottoman (2020), portrayed Rumi in the film Mevlana Mest-i Aşk (2024) and starred in Kral Kaybederse (2025).