Darren Criss Celebrates 10 Years Since His First Appearance on Glee

Ashley Boucher
·2 min read
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Joe Viles/FOX Darren Criss

Darren Criss is celebrating a decade since his first appearance on the beloved dramedy Glee.

The 33-year-old actor shared a lengthy Instagram post on Monday marking 10 years to the day that he first appeared on the Fox series as Dalton Academy's Blaine Anderson.

Criss credits Glee with launching his career into a "different level."

"And while a number of you by that point may have already been pretty familiar with me as a totally awesome boy wizard or a Disney song nerd from the internet stage, no one can deny that Glee’s world presence catapulted my life to an entirely different level, and gave my career the opportunity to carry on in the way it’s been able to for the past decade," he wrote.

"And it all happened through a literal song and dance that I could not be more proud of and grateful for," the Hollywood star continued.

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Today marks the 10 year anniversary of my first appearance on Glee as Blaine Anderson in the episode “Never Been Kissed.” And while a number of you by that point may have already been pretty familiar with me as a totally awesome boy wizard or a Disney song nerd from the internet stage, no one can deny that Glee’s world presence catapulted my life to an entirely different level, and gave my career the opportunity to carry on in the way it’s been able to for the past decade. ⁣ ⁣ And it all happened through a literal song and dance that I could not be more proud of and grateful for. So whether you’re a Glee fan from back in the day, continue to re-watch it, or watching it now for the first time, thank you for allowing Blaine into your life. People always tell me how Glee changed their life, and I’m always happy to remind them how yeah, it changed mine too. And how they, and you reading this, are a part of that. So thank you. ⁣ ⁣ But words and throwback pictures can only say so much.⁣ ⁣ So to celebrate this milestone, I’m gonna give some of that love and appreciation back and throw a livestream concert entirely for charity benefiting a variety of good causes in need during this insane year. I’m calling it DEC•AID, and I’ll be sharing songs, stories, and never-before-seen content from those good ol’ Glee days. I’ll even be auctioning off some special personal items to see if we can raise some extra dough!⁣ ⁣ This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a very long time, but just needed the right occasion. And between today’s anniversary, the holidays coming up, and the general sense of hope now in the air, the timing felt right. The show will be live on Saturday, November 28th, at 1pm PST. Still working out all the details but save the date and stay tuned via http://www.darrencriss.com/decaid or click the link in my bio.⁣ ⁣ In the meantime, in anticipation of DEC•AID, join me on Instagram Live TODAY at 4pm pst where I live-watch & react to “Never Been Kissed,” something I haven’t watched in… TEN YEARS. Come join me, watch along… and let’s see what I have to say!!! ⁣ ⁣ Love you all, thanks for hangin’ with me and Blaine all these years. Here’s to many more!

A post shared by Darren Criss (@darrencriss) on Nov 9, 2020 at 3:11pm PST

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"So whether you’re a Glee fan from back in the day, continue to re-watch it, or watching it now for the first time, thank you for allowing Blaine into your life. People always tell me how Glee changed their life, and I’m always happy to remind them how yeah, it changed mine too. And how they, and you reading this, are a part of that. So thank you."

Adding that "words and throwback pictures can only say so much," Criss announced that he's throwing a charity concert to celebrate the milestone.

⁣

"I’m calling it DEC•AID, and I’ll be sharing songs, stories, and never-before-seen content from those good ol’ Glee days. I’ll even be auctioning off some special personal items to see if we can raise some extra dough!⁣" he said, explaining that the proceeds will go toward "a variety of good causes in need during this insane year."

Adam Rose/FOX Darren Criss and Chris Colfer on Glee

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"This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a very long time, but just needed the right occasion," the American Crime Story actor said. "And between today’s anniversary, the holidays coming up, and the general sense of hope now in the air, the timing felt right."

Criss' DEC•AID will be held on November 28 at 1 p.m. PT.

"Love you all, thanks for hangin’ with me and Blaine all these years. Here’s to many more!" he concluded the post.

The DEC•AID website describes the event as "a cozy at-home livestream concert for charity" and invites fans to get alerts on the details via email or text.