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All grown up! Swoon-worthy photos of Zaijian Jaranilla that will make you adore him more!

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Feeling old yet? 14 photos of Zaijian Jaranilla that will make you say “Binata na siya!”

Mary Ann Bardinas

More than a decade ago, we used to admire him as the wide-eyed “Miracle Boy” named Santino in the 2009 hit teleserye <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/maybukaspa">May Bukas Pa</a>. At present, Zaijian Jaranilla has grown to become one of the most versatile and bankable actors of his generation, capturing our hearts not just with his handsome looks, but with his refreshing take on the iconic onscreen sidekick Ding in <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/darna">Mars Ravelo’s Darna</a>.Just like some of the stars that we look up to at present, his showbiz career kicked-off through the kiddie sketch gag show <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/goinbulilit">Goin’ Bulilit</a> in 2008 wherein he appeared in several episodes. He also became part of series <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/articles-photos/71011418-throwback-i-love-betty-la-fea-2009-13395">I Love Betty La Fea</a>  and Komiks Presents Tiny Tony as he played the young versions of the male leads. He immediately got his breakthrough role as Santino, a young orphan adopted by priests who has the ability to talk directly to God and help other people by either healing them or giving life pointers, in the classic teleserye <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/maybukaspa">May Bukas Pa</a>. It ran for one year and triumphantly dominated the primetime block, as well as bestowing him various recognitions for his riveting performance. Subsequently, Zaijian was offered the lead characters in Kapamilya dramas <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/articles-photos/08080317-kapamilya-throwback-noah-2010-14804">Noah</a>, Ikaw ang Pag-ibig (2011), Lorenzo’s Time (2012), and <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/articles-photos/throwback-2014s-hawak-kamay-14687">Hawak Kamay</a> (2014). Aside from that, he also had stints in anthologies <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/wansapanataym">Wansapanataym</a>, <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/maalaalamokaya/">Maalaala Mo Kaya</a>, and <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/ipaglabanmo">Ipaglaban Mo</a>, as well as in <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/angprobinsyano">FPJ&#x27;s Ang Probinsyano</a> (2015), <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/thestoryofus">The Story of Us</a> (2016), and in the American TV series <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/almostparadise">Almost Paradise</a> (2020). Now that he’s already in his early 20s, the young esteemed actor is able to prove that he is indeed ready to take on edgier roles as he wishes to get away from his iconic role Santino. And we could say that he succeeded in his personal pursuit through his portrayal of Liksi in the 2018 fantasy-action series <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/bagani">Bagani</a>, his cameo appearance in the 2021 series <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/angsaiyoayakin">Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin</a> as the late son of Jodi Sta. Maria’s character, his remarkable stint in <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/tbmv2022">The Broken Marriage Vow</a> as Gio Ilustre, and now that he’s more recognized as this generation’s Ding in <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/darna">Mars Ravelo’s Darna</a>.Aside from these teleseryes, Zaijian was also able to display his remarkable acting prowess in the 2019 iWantTFC Original series “Story of My Life,” and in films “24/7 in Love” (2012), and “Boyette: Not A Girl Yet” (2020) that he both topbilled.As we watch him grow as an actor before our eyes, we have also noticed how the once lanky boy has transformed into a dashing heartthrob, who now swoons a lot of girls (and girls at heart!) with his handsomeness and fit physique. See his evolution through his photos that we collated in this gallery!Catch Zaijian on <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/darna">Mars Ravelo’s Darna</a>, weeknights on <a href="https://kapamilyachannel.com">Kapamilya Channel</a>, <a href="https://kapamilyaonlinelive.com">Kapamilya Online Live</a>, A2Z, <a href="https://app.iwanttfc.com/Mkr3OdLk6ab">iWantTFC</a>.

These photos show Zaijian Jaranilla’s transformation from an adorable lanky, wide-eyed boy to a dashing heartthrob who now swoons us with his good looks and talents!