Darren Criss endeared himself to all the Gleeks of the world as Blaine in the hit TV series ‘Glee’.

MANILA, Philippines — It's already been six episodes into “Glee’’ and Charice, after her much talked-about appearance in the season premiere, has been noticeably absent from the proceedings.

But unbeknownst to most Filipinos, another Pinoy has made it onto television’s hottest show in the person of Darren Criss, the 23-year-old half-Filipino and half-Irish actor who plays Blaine, a potential love interest for the Kurt Hummel character.

Darren made the revelation in a tweet he made four months ago, after responding to a follower’s reaction regarding his auditioning for the role of Prince Zuko in the M. Night Shyamalan helmed “The Last Airbender”.

“Dude, I’m half-Pinoy through and through. Guess they didn’t want any happas. But I’m sort of glad I wasn’t part of that film,” he said in his Twitter.

Darren certainly made a splash in his debut episode, introducing himself to Gleeks around the world with the Katy Perry’s catchy pop ditty “Teenage Dream.” And it looks like the Gleeks have certainly taken a liking to him, propelling his version of “Teenage Dream” to number one on the iTunes charts, as well as more than a million views on YouTube. Reports are even circulating that negotiations are being made to turn him into a series regular!

Accidental YouTube superstar
Just like Charice, Darren had already amassed a fan base from YouTube. His YouTube page is “lclmeyer”. They first saw him as “Harry Potter” in “A Very Potter Musical” and “A Very Potter Sequel”.

The two musicals, which had songs written mostly by Darren, were staged by the University of Michigan theater production group StarKidPotter. Both musicals were parodies based on J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series.

“About two years ago, we made this silly musical called ‘A Very Potter Musical’ that was never meant to be seen by anyone but ourselves and our friends, and we just so happened to have filmed it, and that was that,” he recalls in a recent Vanity Fair interview. “We decided to put it up on YouTube for friends and family who missed it, and the next thing we knew we had an accidental YouTube phenomenon on our hands.” Phenomenon is certainly the word.

“A Very Potter Musical” and “A Very Potter Sequel” collectively gathered more than 25 million hits on YouTube.

“It blew up, and it really changed my life in terms of what I was going to pursue. We got a lot of attention and support from that, and that has been a platform for the other things we do,” Darren continues on the Vanity Fair interview.

“It’s been a huge force in my life and a very wild journey. I never would have thought that would have happened for some sh*ts-and-giggles endeavor I did in college.”

Whatever happens, happens
Before Glee, Darren had already released an EP (extended play) entitled “Human.” He also starred in several StarKid productions like “Little White Lie” and “Me and my Dick”. He also had a recurring role on the now defunct supernatural series “Eastwick” and a guest spot in the crime procedural “Cold Case”.

Getting the role of Blaine has certainly been his biggest break, but Darren had actually auditioned for a different role even before Glee made it to the airwaves.

“I first auditioned two-and-a-half year ago for the pilot. I went out for the role of Finn originally, and I’m not a football player. I’m a smaller guy. So I didn’t get it,” he reveals to Vanity Fair.

“So when I got the break for Blaine, it was the first time where I said to myself, this is something that I could maybe do.”

With the extremely positive reception that his character has gotten, it seems that Darren is indeed another Filipino set to make waves in the US. He is, however, taking it all in stride, as evidenced by a recent interview with Billboard.

“Of course I would love to be on the show as long as possible. I do love working with everybody and he is a wonderful character. I love what the show stands for and the place it fits in our social pop consciousness. Whatever happens, happens,” he says.