What is Cem Yılmaz's Net Worth?
Cem Yılmaz is a Turkish actor, comedian, and filmmaker who has a net worth of $20 million. Cem Yılmaz is known for his roles in such films as "The Magician," "Yahşi Batı," "Hunting Season," "The Water Diviner," and the "G.O.R.A." franchise. As a filmmaker, he directed "The Magician," "A.R.O.G," "Coming Soon," and "Ali Baba and the Seven Dwarfs," among other titles. Yılmaz has won a number of accolades for his work, including Sadri Alışık Awards for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor.
Early Life and Education
Cem Yılmaz was born on April 23, 1973 in Istanbul, Turkey. He has a brother named Can, who is a writer. As a youth, Yılmaz was educated at the Mehmet Akif School, Bahçelievler Kazım Karabekir Secondary School, and Etiler Anadolu Tourism Vocational High School. For his higher education, he attended Boğaziçi University, where he majored in tourism and hotel management.
Film Career
In 1998, Yılmaz made his feature film debut with the lead role in the comedy "Everything's Gonna Be Great." The film became a significant box-office success in Turkey. Yılmaz next appeared in the 2001 dramedy "Vizontele." His biggest success yet came in 2004, when he both wrote and starred in the science-fiction comedy "G.O.R.A.: A Space Movie," about a used carpet salesman who gets abducted by aliens. One of the highest-grossing Turkish films of the year, it spawned two sequels and later a Netflix television series. Yılmaz went on to appear in the 2005 comedy "Magic Carpet Ride," for which he won the Sadri Alışık Award for Best Supporting Actor. The very next year, he won the Sadri Alışık Award for Best Actor for his performance in "The Magician," which he wrote and co-directed. After voicing the main character in the Turkish dub of the American animated film "Bee Movie" in 2007, Yılmaz wrote, co-directed, and starred in "A.R.O.G: A Prehistoric Film," a sequel to "G.O.R.A." In this one, his character is sent back in time by an interplanetary rival bent on revenge. "A.R.O.G" became the second-highest-grossing Turkish film of 2008.
Yılmaz began the 2010s with the historical comedy "Yahşi Batı," which he both wrote and starred in. The film gave him another major box-office success. Yılmaz subsequently starred opposite Şener Şen in the crime drama "Hunting Season," which was also a commercial hit. In 2012, he made his international film debut in the Italian drama "Magnificent Presence," starring Elio Germano. Two years later, Yılmaz appeared in Russell Crowe's film "The Water Diviner," playing Sergeant Jemal. The same year, he wrote, directed, and starred in the comedy "Coming Soon." Yılmaz went on to write, direct, and star in the action comedy "Ali Baba and the Seven Dwarfs," which came out in 2015. The following year, he appeared in "İftarlık Gazoz" and voiced Nick Wilde in the Turkish dub of the Disney animated film "Zootopia." In 2017, Yılmaz was in "Deli Aşk," and in 2018 he wrote and starred in "Arif V 216," the third film in the "G.O.R.A." franchise. He subsequently wrote, directed, and starred in "Karakomik Filmler" (2019) and "Karakomik Filmler 2" (2020).
Stand-up Comedy
Yılmaz began his stand-up comedy career in the early 1990s, performing in bars. Over the ensuing decades, he released a number of comedy specials, including "CM101MMXI Fundamentals," which was released theatrically in 2013.
Other Appearances
Among his other appearances in the media, Yılmaz has appeared in advertisements for such brands as Panasonic, Doritos, Opet, and Türk Telekom.
Personal Life
In 2012, Yılmaz wed actress and model Ahu Yağtu. They had a son named Kemal before divorcing at the end of 2013.