Sørlie was from Otta and traveled to Oslo to study medicine, but switched to the Statens Teaterhøgskole in 1978. In May 1981 he started at the National Theater under Toralv Maurstad.

He was married to the actress Linn Stokke. Sørlie died together with his father in a traffic accident on the highway. Linn Stokke was pregnant with child number two with Sørlie when he died.