Turkish actors who won beauty pageants
Turkish show business is distinguished by one very curious phenomenon: there are a lot of very beautiful faces. It is pleasant for viewers to look at really beautiful faces on the screen, even if in life you are unlikely to encounter such a concentration of beauty in one place.
The main talent pool for the Turkish screen is not the institutes of cinematography but in the modeling business. And more precisely: the competition the Best model of Turkey that is held once a year in the fall. For two decades the television producers were looking at the winners of this prestigious competition, offering them the main roles in TV shows. And it does not matter that the boy has no experience, the main thing is a beautiful face. And then it all depends on the pretender. If he has a talent his career in Turkish show business will be bright and long. If not, then they will forget about him, because a lot of other model participants are next in line.
So what was the life of the winners and participants of the model contests? You will be surprised to learn that many bright stars of the Turkish screen began their careers there. Here is a list of the pretty boys who managed to prove that they are also good actors. Every year with the beginning of the autumn-winter television season the stars who are eagerly awaited by viewers not only in their own country but also far beyond its borders return to Turkey’s screens. Whom will we see in the new autumn-winter season of 2019-2020? Here is a list of the most high-profile returns of the upcoming season.
Burak Hakkı – 1994
Popular Turkish actor who has a number of significant works on television in his career. The most famous series is From lips to heart / Dudaktan Kalbe and Little Women / Küçük Kadınlar. He did not lose his charm and popularity, continuing to work actively in the series. He played Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat in the most popular Turkish TV series of the last five years Resurrection Ertugrul / Diriliş: Ertuğrul.
Alp Kırşan – 2000
He began his career in the series but then found his vocation by becoming a TV presenter. For many years he has been presenting the most popular program on Turkish television – the reality show Survivor.
Tolgahan Sayışman – 2002
After a successful modeling career and a number of setbacks in the series, he got a big chance by playing a leading role in the popular hit Farewell Rumeli / Elveda Rumeli. Four years later, the new successful series starring Tolgahan Time of Tulips / Lale Devri appeared on the screens. Although it did not become a big hit the show continued on Turkish screens for four seasons. The career of the actor continued with the series I’m not giving up / Asla Vazgeçmem that was also warmly greeted by the audience. After a slight decline in his career, Tolgahan signed a contract with the state television channel TRT1 to work on the TV series Champion / Şampiyon.
Birkan Sokullu – 2003
Third place in the modeling competition provided the novice actor with the attention of producers, which he successfully used. His work portfolio includes TV shows such as Little Women / Küçük Kadınlar, Secrets of Istanbul / Küçük Sırlar, Kurt Seyit and Sura / Kurt Seyit ve Şura. In 2016, he played a leading role in the series The Song of Life / Hayat Sarkısı. The project did not become a big hit but the work of Birkan was noticed and appreciated. He is currently considered one of the most talented actors in Turkey.
Berk Oktay – 2003
For six years, he successfully pursued a modeling career both in Turkey and abroad, having achieved significant success. Work on Turkish television for Berk began with the famous TV series Dangerous Streets / Arka Sokaklar, where the young actor attracted the attention of the Turkish audience. After a series of not very successful TV shows he had some luck with a summer comedy Relationship status: confused / İlişki Durumu: Karışık. However, the main success came to Berk with the TV series Warrior / Savaşçı that confidently takes place in the top ten of the most popular TV shows in Turkey.
Mert Öcal – 2004
The actor’s career consisted of numerous minor roles in various serials, including the one in the hit Warrior / Savaşçı. He also tried to make a modeling career abroad but did not achieve much success.
Erkan Meriç – 2009
He started his acting career two years before the model competition, playing a small role in the Valley of the Wolves / Kurtlar Vadisi Pusu. He gained fame after working on the daily series You Name it / Adini Sen Koy, however, he quit the show with his partner Hazal Subasi after the second season, taking up the restaurant business.
Yusuf Çim – 2011
He started his career in the summer TV series Scent of Strawberries / Çilek Kokusu which was not very popular with the Turkish audience but the youth audience accepted it enthusiastically. Unfortunately, the subsequent shows of the actor were not successful.
Furkan Palalı – 2011
After a rather modest career start, he got his chance by starring in the popular romantic comedy series No: 309, becoming one of the rising stars of the Turkish screen. As long as his career is in an unstable position, everything will be decided by the success or failure of TV shows and films in which he will play in the future.
Serkan Çayoğlu – 2011
He received great fame after one of the best summer romantic comedies of Turkey Cherry season / Kiraz Mevsimi, where he played the leading role. Alas, he can not repeat his success, all subsequent works of the actor did not enjoy the special love of the Turkish audience. Although Netflix Internet platform bought the series Wolf / Boru, in which he played a leading role as Netflix Original.
Berk Atan – 2012
He gained fame due to his work on the youth series Daughters of Güneş / Güneşin Kızları. Although the series was not a big hit, many viewers noticed and loved the actor. After that, he satisfied the high expectations in the next work Tears of Jennet / Cennet’in Gözyaşları. The series was also not a big hit but it became a modest success in the rising star’s career.
Ekin Mert Daymaz – 2013
He started his career in the summer series The smell of strawberries / Çilek Kokusu in which he played one of the roles. His career so far consists of not very successful serials but he continues to be in demand among Turkish producers and maybe next time he will be lucky.
Burak Çelik – 2013
He was noticed from the first role in the popular hit of the Turkish screen Black flower / Karagül in which he played one of the supporting roles. Alas, the subsequent work of the actor did not become a breakthrough. But he worked in one of the most significant projects of recent years – the series The Oath / Söz. Burak’s further career will depend on how well he chooses the next show.
Yılmaz Kunt – 2015
An actor’s career is just beginning, and for the time being, there are only minor roles in not very big TV shows. However, Yılmaz was noticed and quite possibly he will have a bit of luck sooner or later.
Onur Seyit Yaran – 2016
For two years he has played one of the roles in the state television channel TRT1 series Get Up on the Go / Kalk Gidelim. The series is not a big hit but it is going quite well. It gives confidence in the future but will not make him a star.
Kenan İmirzalıoğlu - 1997
If you ask the Turkish viewer who Kenan is, he will raise his eyes to Heaven. The actor is rightly one of the biggest and brightest superstars of the Turkish screen. After winning a model competition, he received an offer from the famous producer Osman Sinav to play in his series Crazy Heart / Deli Yürek, that in one night turned him into a star. This was followed by other successful hits. The most famous of these shows are Ezel and Karaday. The shows secured for Kenan the status of the most popular Turkish actor. Even his latest setback, Mehmet: the conqueror of the world had ratings that many actors can only dream of. The series was closed due to the high cost of production.
Mehmet Akif Alakurt - 2001
An interesting actor and a very difficult person. Having two super hits in his portfolio Sila and Adanali, he can rightly be called a superstar. However, after the failure of the last series, too proud actor decided to leave the Turkish screens forever, allowing himself rude remarks in social networks. However, even the harsh statements of Mehmet have recently caused great public interest. It shows that interest in him does not fade with time.
Kıvanç Tatlıtuğ - 2002
Probably, even those who are not very interested in Turkish serials know about Kıvanç. His name is found not only on the screens but also in stores because he continues his career in the advertising business, presenting several big brands in the market. A brilliant acting career provided him these lucrative contracts. The first series Silver / Gümüş turned an unknown boy into the biggest star not only in Turkey but throughout the Middle East. However, the iconic role in his career happened a bit later: Behlül Haznedar’s complex and ambiguous image in the Forbidden Love / Aşk-ı Memnu TV series touched the hearts of the Turkish audience first, and then the audience around the world. The series still continues to remain the trump card of the actor. And despite a number of not successful projects of recent years, he continues to be one of the most popular actors in Turkey and abroad.
Burak Özçivit - 2005
The phenomenon of Burak Özçivit is in the fact that he managed to become a big star in Turkey not having in his portfolio solo super hits. He enjoyed the world fame with the role of Balibey in the series Magnificent Century / Muhteşem Yüzyıl, where he played in two seasons. The subsequent works of the actor Çalıkuşu and Endless Love / Kara Sevda did not become big hits in the Turkish air but this did not prevent the actor from gaining fame not only at home but also abroad. He is probably the embodiment of chivalry, whom every woman would like to see next to her, and it is this image that gives the actor the love of the audience. It remains only to confirm the people's love in the series Resurrection Osman, where he plays the role of the founder of the Ottoman Empire.
Çağatay Ulusoy - 2010
The brightest star of the younger generation of the Turkish actors began his career with the super hit series I called her Feriha / Adını Feriha Koydum. Curiously, he received an invitation to join the show two hours after winning the modeling competition. Unlike his colleagues, in whose career both failures and successes happened, Çağatay managed to pursue a career without failures, building up an army of fans with each new hit. After the huge success of the series Insider / Içerde in Turkey, which was accompanied by the huge success of Feriha abroad, Hollywood Internet platform Netflix made an actor an offer to play in the first Turkish-American series The Protector. According to official data of the platform, the series has become one of its successes. By April 2019 the number of viewers of the project was 20 million accounts worldwide. Turkish audience places the special hopes on Çağatay as an actor who is able to open the door to Hollywood for the Turks and his fans hope that he will continue his career in the United States.
