 According to his interview, it was his brother, Ozan, who brought home a cassette of Ferhan Şensoy's movie "Ferhangi Şeyler" and Yalabık memorized every line of it and became determined to become an actor.He later went to Şişli Terakki High School followed by Sakıp Sabancı Anadolu High School, and in 1993 by inviting Cengiz Deveci to the school he helped in the establishment of Sakıp Sabancı Anadolu High School Theater Department.Yalabık, who played in various roles in many amateur groups, eventually got enrolled in Istanbul University State Conservatory in 1997 to study theater.