It’s a Glee-ful moment for the Gleeks: Darren Criss is officially a Tony winner! Cue the confetti and a Journey victory ballad (Glee version, of course) — as Criss continued a three-year winning streak for the Glee cast. Mr. Schue would be proud.
At the 2025 Tony Awards, Criss won for his stellar performance as Oliver in Maybe Happy Ending, an original musical about robots exploring love, loneliness, and friendship in a futuristic world. Kinda like Wall-E, if Wall-E involved Blaine belting his heart out. In 2024, Jonathan Groff, who played Jesse St. James on Glee, won Best Lead Actor in a Musical for his role as Franklin Shepard in Merrily We Roll Along. (Quick lore drop: this year, Criss beat out Jonathan Groff for that same award.) Then, in 2023, Alex Newell, who played Unique Adams on Glee, made history, becoming the first non-binary actor to win a Tony — taking home the award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for their performance in Shucked.
Jenna Ushkowitz, who played Tina Cohen-Chang, is also a two-time Tony winner. She earned Best Play in 2020 as producer of The Inheritance, and Best Revival of a Musical in 2018 as co-producer for Once on This Island. Other Glee stars have snagged Tonys in the past as well, including Kristin Chenoweth, Ali Stroker, and Idina Menzel.
When you think about it, the Glee cast has kind of been running the Tony Awards…
This win puts Criss halfway to an EGOT, checking off an Emmy and Tony win. Criss won his Emmy in 2018 for his performance as lead actor in The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.
Naturally, Gleeks across the world are celebrating like New Directions won the National Championships. And as any true fan would, they’re taking to X (formerly Twitter) to share their excitement, favorite memes, and predictions for the future.
So, I guess the question is… Who’s next? My money is on Amber Riley, but I’ll be cheering for every Gleek in the wings.