Halit Ergenç (born 30 April 1970) is a Turkish actor. Halit Ergenç was born as the son of Yesilçam-era actor Sait Ergenç on 30 April 1970 in Istanbul. He completed his secondary education at Besiktas Atatürk High School in 1989 and entered Istanbul Technical University to study Marine Engineering. He graduated from Operetta and Musical Theatre Departments of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. He supported himself working as a computer operator and marketer. He briefly worked as a backing vocalist and dancer for Ajda Pekkan and Leman Sam. In 1996, Ergenç began acting at the Dormen Theatre and had his first leading role in the musical The King and I. He established himself on television with his part in the series Kara Melek. He continued working in theatre with plays such as Kiss Me, Kate, Tatli Charity, Beni Seviyor, Kral ve Ben, Amphitrion 2000, Evita, Hayalet and Ötekiler and Sarkilar Susarsa. Following appearances in the series Köse Kapmaca and Böyle mi Olacakti, he went to New York and acted in the musical The Adventures of Zak. In 2000, he participated in the films Hiç Yoktan Ask and Ölümün El Yazisi and then the series Dedem, Gofret ve Ben and Zerda where he starred opposite Ece Uslu. Then, he had appearances in a number of plays such as ''Bugün Git Yarin Gel, Popcorn, Arapsaçi and Sevgilime Göz Kulak Ol. In 2004], he starred in the series Aliye with Sanem Çelik and Nejat Isler. In 2005 and 2006, Ergenç acted in the films Babam ve Oglum directed by Çagan Irmak, The Net 2.0, Tramway and Ilk Ask. Beginning in 2006, he starred as Onur Aksal in the hit series Binbir Gece which was on air until 2009. During this period he also had roles in the films Devrim Arabalari which was based on a true story and Aci Ask. Ergenç also starred as Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in the film Dersimiz Atatürk which was also based on a true story. Makeup artists transformed his face into Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. In 2011 he starred as Suleiman the Magnificent in the hit series Muhtesem Yüzyil until 2014. Ergenç was involved in the Gezi protests of 2013, appearing in newspaper photos wearing a Bob Marley T-shirt and surgical mask for protection against tear gas. His presence made for interesting copy, since he at once played the role of one of the Ottoman Empire's foremost leaders in the show Muhtesem Yüzyil, and at the same time he was protesting the actions of a government very much invested in celebrating Ottoman glory. Ergenç was subsequently summoned with other cultural leaders to a meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, and Erdogan apparently quizzed Ergenç on Ottoman words used by Suleiman, the character whom Ergenç played in Muhtesem Yüzyil. After, he played Fatali Khan Khoyski who the first Prime Minister of the independent Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in Ali & Nino. He played in the movie Istanbul Kirmizisi directed by Ferzan Özpetek. In 2016, he started playing opposite his wife Bergüzar Korel in Vatanim Sensin. Ergenç's mother was of Albanian descent. He is married to actress Bergüzar Korel with whom he has a son named Ali. He has stated that he likes Zeki Demirkubuz's style and Ferzan Özpetek's emotion, but prefers to work the most with Reha Erdem and Çagan Irmak, whom he describes as both young and talented directors. In 2017, Ergenç visited Pakistan and attended the Lux Style Awards-where he was honoured with the International Icon award-due to his popularity in the country. In his accepting speech, Ergenç said that he had grown up knowing Pakistan as a "brother country."