I thought I was finished with Gemstone alumni, but there are several more, and Nick Vardakas is of special interest.
In Episode 3.3, Nick is one of the teens making anti-smut signs as Kelvin invites Keefe to Cousin's Night, and in Episode 3.4, he appears at the Parents-Teens United Party where Keefe is outed.
Hi father is Nick Arapolglou, who later confronts Kelvin about the "rumors swirling around" (after confiscating the toy from his son's room?).
Our Nick grew up in Charleston and attended Wando High School in Mount Pleasant, where the Gemstone Salvation Center is located (in fiction). He appeared in Way Off Broadway and Dracula: A Radio Play, and participated in Army Junior ROTC and the swim team. He also posted a video of a school film project where he tries to get the courage to talk to a cute boy.
Nick's first professional acting job, on The Righteous Gemstones, came while he was a student at Triton Technical College in North Charleston. He also started a career in modeling (in case you are wondering, 6'0", waist 32", shoe size 12").
He received a certificate in cyber security in 2023, and transferred to the College of Charleston, where as of this writing he is majoring in IT. His "About Me" page says that he has experience in acting, mechanics, cooking, IT, and customer service, and speaks English, Spanish, and Italian. Not Greek? Vardakas is a Greek name.
And three more acting credits:
In Lucky F*king Kid (2024), an ad for Lucky Energy Drink shown "on all social media," Nick plays a 23-year old "no money loser" who is paid to deliver a "totally unpaid testimonial."
The Hitchhiker (2024) was written and directed by Ben Beauchamp and Timons Flower (who directed Spider-Man: The Dark Age with Jak Kristowski) and stars Gemstone alum Dillon Brady as the Hitchhiker. Nick plays his boyfriend or victim (it's hard to tell from the trailer).
I usually put a n*de photo on the first page of profiles, but I couldn't find any of Nick that weren't explicit, so they have to go after the break.
Caution: explicit.