Bio
Merlin Balie is a South African actor best known for his role as Elton in a series of "Player 23" commercials for cellphone provider Vodacom.
He also played the role of Werner in the SABC2 soapie 7de Laan and is a regular cast member of the SABC2 variety comedy series Colour TV.
Born and raised in Paarl, Balie studied Drama at the University of Stellenbosch. He went on to make a name for himself in the theatre industry and has done productions such as Vatmaar, directed by Janice Honeyman, Bungee Writing Finals, Die Laaste Aand, Scribble and many more.
His other experience includes roles in A Boy Called Twist (feature film), directed by Tim Green; the SABC1 drama series Divers Down and Interrogation Room, More Than Just a Game (feature film), Luck (feature film) and Pasella, to mention a few.
Merlin has done numerous TV commercials such as Canon, Motorola, Nedbank, Old Brown, KFC, Hansa, Good Hope FM and the Vodacom commercials.
He has also performed with The Paarl Orchestra as a lead singer.