Darren Criss
Criss in 2011, photo by Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com
Birth Name: Darren Everett Criss
Place of Birth: San Francisco, California, United States
Date of Birth: February 5, 1987
Ethnicity:
*father – English, German, Northern Irish, remote Scottish
*mother – Filipino, as well as Spanish and Chinese
Darren Criss is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. His roles include The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, Superman: Man of Tomorrow, and Midway (2019), as well as many works on stage.
Darren is the son of Cerina and Charles Criss, who started EastWest Bank, serving as its Chairman and CEO. His brother is musician Chuck Criss, of the band Freelance Whales. Darren is married to Mia Swier, with whom he has two children.
Darren’s father was American-born, and was of English, German, Northern Irish, and remote Scottish, ancestry. Darren’s mother is Filipino-born, and has Filipino, Spanish, and Chinese ancestry. In an interview on Philstar, Darren stated that he knows basic Visayan rather than Tagalog.
Picture of Darren with his parents can be seen here, and, also with his brother, here.
Darren’s patrilineal ancestry can be traced to Johanne Jorge Nicholas Crist, who was born, c. 1690, in Germany, and to Johanne’s wife, Anna Elizabeth Mueller.
Darren’s paternal grandfather was Charles William Criss (the son of William Ramsey Criss and Olive May White). Charles was born in Pennsylvania. William was the son of Jacob Pitser Criss and Margurete Duran Brown, whose parents were born in Ireland. Olive was the daughter of James Francis White and Nancy Rosetta Cochran.
Darren’s paternal grandmother was Charlotte Elizabeth Bartlett (the daughter of Everett Burl Bartlett and Edna M. Hughes). Charlotte was born in Pennsylvania. Everett was the son of Arthur Emory Bartlett and Mary Elizabeth Wilson.
Sources: http://www.philstar.com
Marriage announcement of Darren’s paternal grandparents, Charles William Criss and Charlotte Elizabeth Bartlett – http://www.newspapers.com
Darren’s paternal grandfather, Charles William Criss, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Darren’s paternal great-grandparents, William Ramsey Criss and Olive May White, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Darren’s paternal great-grandfather, William Ramsey Criss, on the 1880 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
He looks very Irish or should i say Black Irish a lot of people in west Ireland and south ireland look like him
He doesn’t have much Irish ancestry, if any. Father’s genealogy up now.
He is of Irish descent but he has a English surname not all Irish people with English surnames have English ancestry some don’t but most Irish people with English surnames have English ancestry there is lots of British descendants in Ireland there is lots of Irish descendants in Britain there is about as much British descendants in Ireland than there is Irish descendants in Britain.
I used to watch Glee, I forgot the character he played.
I did not know he is half filipino. I am Filipina and I must
admit, when people talk to me in public, I am either mistaken
for being Chinese, Hawaiian or Vietnamese.
I can understand why they think i am Chinese, my grandfather
is half Chinese, and my mom’s ( mother) is french/Spanish.
I can see why you think Darren Criss looks are typical Caucasian.
Have you ever seen a blonde filipino or filipina actress?
I have.
He is a white man
Wow he looks white as hell. I mean I’ve seen white looking Filipino mixes but I thought he was straight up white. I mean he doesn’t even look exotic! He looks like a regular white guy.
Yeah you are right. I bet his mother had european ancestry along with spanish, fillipino, and chinese, or his father had more than irish
His father may have English blood
I’m a White Filipino mix and i look white like Italian Spanish looking i look too Mediterranean too be Filipino.