This is the 'mega-hunk' who drove Twitter users wild at the GOP debate: He is 24-year-old actor and director Greg Caruso who 'makes politics worth watching'

  • Mystery gray-suited man sparked excitement on Twitter during debate
  • He is LA-based actor and director Greg Caruso, the 24-year-old son of millionaire real estate developer and Republican donor Rick Caruso 
  • Just minutes in, viewers gushed that he 'makes politics worth watching' 
  • He was later seen chuckling at someone's phone, perhaps looking at Twitter
  • He is 6ft 2 inches tall and weights 170 pounds 
  • He declined to disclose his relationship status to CNN

By Dailymail.com Reporter

Published: 23:31 EST, 16 September 2015 | Updated: 10:06 EST, 17 September 2015

It may have been lacking in drama.

But the GOP debate delivered some excitement to viewers at home: a mystery man.

Just minutes into the event on Wednesday night, Twitter was awash with people desperate to know who was sat behind CNN host Jake Tapper.

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The hunky 6ft 2inch, 170-pound hunky actor and director Greg Caruso wouldn't divulge his relationship status, but viewers gushed that he made politics worth watching

The hunky 6ft 2inch, 170-pound hunky actor and director Greg Caruso wouldn't divulge his relationship status, but viewers gushed that he made politics worth watching

Excitement: Twitter was awash with people desperate to know who was sat behind CNN host Jake Tapper

Excitement: Twitter was awash with people desperate to know who was sat behind CNN host Jake Tapper

People were desperate to know who the gray-suited, heavy-eyebrowed man was as he stared intently ahead 

People were desperate to know who the gray-suited, heavy-eyebrowed man was as he stared intently ahead 

His is 24-year-old Greg Caruso, an LA-based actor and director. His father Rick Caruso is a wealthy real estate developer who has poured millions into GOP campaigns including that of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Greg Caruso told CNN that he's a fan of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, but hasn't picked a favorite candidate in the 2016 primary field. 

'I think out of everyone, (Bush) improved the most from the first debate,' Caruso told CNN. 'Carly Fiorina did a great job and was in her element. That was the highlight of the debate to watch her. She held her own.'

Greg was born and rasied in LA, and was a star football player at the Brentwood School. From there he went to the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts, where he was also a member of the football team. Caruso also was a member of the Trojans football team. 

On the USC roster he is listed as a 6'2', 170 safety.

Caruso declined to divulge his relationship status to CNN.

On Greg's Vimeo page he says, ' I have a true appreciation for the history of film, specifically The Golden Age of Cinema from 1925-1950 and film noir. I believe some of the most inspirational, meticulously stylized, artistically crafted way of story telling, flourished especially after World War II, in the 1940s.

'I have taken several courses and researched in detail such directors as Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Frank Capra, Howard Hawks, and John Ford in hopes of continuing their mark on film and story telling.

'I have been fortunate enough to travel a lot in my life with my family and feel I have a global appreciation for art, architecture, culture, and film in general. 

'Filmmaking for me comes most naturally and creatively with the help of other mediums such as literature and painting. I plan to create relatable but unique, provocative but real, and stylized but refined films that positively inspire people in a meaningful way.'

Caruso was the director of a documentary called Making the American Man.

Actor and director Greg Caruso
Real estate developer Rick Caruso

The actor and director Greg Caruso is the 24-year-old son of millionaire real estate developer and Republican donor Rick Caruso (right)

'Filmmaking for me comes most naturally and creatively with the help of other mediums such as literature and painting. I plan to create relatable but unique, provocative but real, and stylized but refined films that positively inspire people in a meaningful way.'

Caruso was the director of a documentary called Making the American Man.

'I have been fortunate enough to travel a lot in my life with my family and feel I have a global appreciation for art, architecture, culture, and film in general. 

'Filmmaking for me comes most naturally and creatively with the help of other mediums such as literature and painting. I plan to create relatable but unique, provocative but real, and stylized but refined films that positively inspire people in a meaningful way.'

Caruso was the director of a documentary called Making the American Man.

'Can we ask this guy his views? Or primarily what his ideal first date is?,' wrote one Twitter user, sharing a picture of the chiseled audience member.

Another said: 'Omg whenever they pan back to the moderator of this debate, there is a really cute guy in a grey suit behind him and he's bae.'

One wrote: 'To the gray suited man behind @JakeTapper... Hit me up cutie'

And another gushed: 'The hottie behind Jake Tapper at the #GOPDebate makes politics worth watching!'

At one point, it seem he noticed his new found celebrity as he was seen giggling at something on somebody's cell phone - perhaps Twitter.

It is not clear who Caruso backs this year; he shocked many as he backed Democrat Jerry Brown in 2010.

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