Kıvanç Tatlıtuğ as HALIL MERT KILIÇ
Word on the street is THEY are a HEAD OF TRANSPORT and member of THE CARTEL for the past 12 YEARS . Though they are IMPATIENT and BOSSY, they can also be CALM and RESOURCEFUL . In the chaos of New York City, they’re sure to fit right in. (BIOGRAPHY)
THE BASICS
Name: Halil Mert Kılıç
Age / D.O.B.: January 30th, 1983 (Aquarius)
Gender, Pronouns & Sexuality: Gender Non-Conforming (he/they) & Bisexual.
Hometown: Cartagena, Colombia
Affiliation: The Cortázar Cartel
Job position: Head of Transport / Professor of Archeological Geography @ nyu
Education: High school, Universidad de los Andes (Bachelors/Masters), University of Rochester (Ph.D), Additional Research/Teaching training.
Relationship status: Single \ promised to @thedocxlevi
Family: Mert Kılıç (father/baba), Klaudia Kılıç-Correa (mother), Eberardo Correa (father/papa), Hasan Kılıç (younger brother), Unnamed Kılıç (younger sister), Ozan Kılıç (5), Aslan Kılıç (2), Oliver Grayson (1), Ibrahim Kılıç (60+).
Languages Spoken: Spanish (Native), English (Native), Albanian (Conversational), Turkish (Conversational)
Positive traits: Ambitious, Confident, Protective, Self-aware.
Negative traits: Impatient, Apathetic, Quiet, Selfless.
SPECIFICS
Born into a Turkish crime family, Halil was almost always kept out of his father's business. Mert hoped that by retiring from the drug trade when his children were young and living a peaceful, quiet life with his wife and their shared partner, that his children would not have the desire to follow in his footsteps as they aged.
He was approached by his father's estranged brother in 2017 who told him the truth - that upon his death, with his father having denounced the title and Halil being the eldest of his siblings, the responsibility for their legacy would fall to him. Hal denied this position due to his loyalty for The Cartel.
Halil will stop at nothing to keep the names of his parents, children, and partners from being spoken of in crime circles.
Despite not being married to either of his girls, he wears a ring on each finger as a symbol of his connections to them and his desire to, one day, in the very far future, marry them both.
While his family reaps the rewards of his secondary work, he keeps them very far removed from it. To them, he's the gentle (but slightly embarrassing) father and partner, who sits at the head of the table at dinner and lunch when he can; who sings their kids to sleep after bath time and books; the man who hovers while they work, waiting for their attention; who chases their eldest around the house hoping for deep, loud laughter straight from his stomach. He's not the angry, threatening, and apathetic man that he has to be in the outside world when he's with them and he never wants them to see that side of him, ever.
He loves the Earth and does everything he can to try and preserve it.
Although he still considers himself cisgender, Halil isn't too concerned with the narrative that comes along with it; he's not afraid to be vulnerable with his partners, to be silly or emotional, to be a good father to his children. Most of all, he follows his own definition of what manhood is and sticks to that pretty strictly.
A chaotic bisexual, unfortunately.
He makes everybody feel like they're family when they join his operations and will do anything to keep them and their cargo as safe as he can.
Constantly giving law enforcement agencies a run for their money; being good at what he does means that he's smart enough to cover all of his basis but suspicious enough for them to suspect something - they just can never prove it.
WANTED CONNECTIONS / PLOTS
Unnamed Kılıç - They were the primary person in Halil's life before their secondary partner came into the picture. She is Halil's first love and is one of the biggest reasons that he didn't go back to Colombia after graduating. They recently split up as of JAN 2026.
Unnamed Kılıç - On a night out with Paige, they both meet this woman and instantly feel drawn together. Although it takes a lot of work for them, eventually they find their way through the murky waters of boundaries and end up in a loving triad that produces two sons biologically shared between Halil and this woman. They recently split up as of JAN 2026.
Siblings - They were raised in the same household as Halil, they're extremely close and will do anything for one another. In fact, Halil doesn't feel complete without them by his side. (1/2 TAKEN)
Trafficking Rival - This person is maybe an ambitious driver of his who has been trying to overthrow him and steal his spot OR a different gang member who is his competition!
Transporters - the people who work directly under Halil, responsible for the physical transport and safety of all Cartel product.
Students
Other Cartel members
ESTABLISHED CONNECTIONS & PLOTS
Levi Grayson (Red String of Fate) - Although they'd met as children, both Halil and Levi had forgotten one another when they reunited as adults. Their kids go to daycare together; their sons have a deep bond, or as deep as a bond can get between two toddlers; and it seems that whenever the side of himself that he keeps away from his family rears its head, Levi is right there to console it or to understand it or whatever the hell he tries to do for him when it arises. Something deeper lingers between them and they've just started acting on it.
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