LOS ANGELES—If you search for “the Internet’s boyfriend” online, the very first search result is “Noah Centineo.” The heartthrob from the 2018 Netflix movie “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” is indeed known as the Internet’s boyfriend—and he will soon be coming to Manila.

Centineo became an endorser for the Philippine clothing branch Bench in 2019. He said he didn’t know he was so big in the Philippines and he hasn’t seen the giant Bench billboard on EDSA. But he will soon.

“I’m actually going to be coming to the Philippines, I believe (I’ll be coming) to Manila at some point this year, which will be very fun,” he said.  “I can’t wait to see you guys.”

Becoming a clothing brand endorser was one of the many things Centineo found himself suddenly signing up for after his breakout 2018. The 22-year-old actor had been playing small parts on various TV shows but it was his turn as the charming Peter Kavinsky opposite Lana Condor’s Lara Jean in “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” that made him a worldwide star—and the aforementioned Internet boyfriend.

In fact, Centineo played another boyfriend in another Netflix project, “Sierra Burgess is a Loser,” and is reprising his role as Peter in the “To All the Boys” sequel, currently in production and out in 2020.

But he exemplified his boyfriend reputation in his Netflix movie, “The Perfect Date,” which started streaming on April 12. In that movie, he plays a hard-up high school student named Brooks Rattigan who wants desperately to earn enough money to pay for enrollment in Yale University.

After an accidental date with Brooks, the smart and sassy Celine Lieberman (Laura Marano, Ally from the Disney Channel’s “Austin & Ally”) suggests Brooks make a business out of going on dates. Brooks asks his best friend Murph (Odiseas Georgiadis) to make it a reality. Murph develops an app called The Stand-In, which allows Brooks to be hired as a date (no physical stuff) for a night. He uses his smarts and charms to be whatever kind of date he is asked to be. He uses his skills and charm to become everything from a cowboy to an art enthusiast. Brooks also pretends to be a rich kid to chase his crush, Shelby (Camila Mendes, Veronica from “Riverdale”). He becomes fast friends with Celine. But the subterfuge with the app soon becomes a source of tension. How long can Brooks keep his secret? And what about his burgeoning bond with Celine? “The Perfect Date” situates itself in the intersection between love, commerce and technology.

With its quirky love triangle and quick humor, “The Perfect Date” is very much an update on classic 1980s teen romances such as “Some Kind of Wonderful” and “Pretty in Pink.” The app is the new element that sets the central romantic conflict in a contemporary context. The lighthearted, accessible film wears its ’80s influences on its sleeve. The boyfriend is one of the most ubiquitous archetypes in popular cinema. “The Perfect Date” is directed by Chris Nelson and based on Steve Bloom’s 2017 novel “The Stand-In.” Bloom is one of the film’s screenwriters.

“I think it’s definitely weird,” Centineo said of playing boyfriends all the time. “It’s a weird coincidence that I just keep playing boyfriends.” Yet his Brooks discovers he is more than just a stand-in, as he learns to really see what’s special around him. “I feel that’s really cool, and I think there’s something about making Brooks kind of outside that normal divide that makes this movie really positive.”

“The Perfect Date” is Centineo’s first leading role and it’s his first time to carry a movie. His earnestness and candor, very obvious on screen, are also obvious in real life.

Asked who he would prefer to date if he used an app like The Stand-In, Centineo instead answered what he would consider someone who would be the perfect date for him, period.  “I look for someone who is into taking care of themselves, you know, physically, like they’re committed to yoga or committed to hiking,” he told Super. “They’re committed to something, committed to taking care of their body, so someone who gives off the vibe that they give a sh_t about this world, this planet, and the people inhabiting it. Someone who listens, but also knows how to speak and communicate effectively and isn’t afraid to do so.”

But he later added with emphasis: “The sex has got to be fire, too.” He went on to explain: “It’s important! People are like, it’s not important, I mean, c’mon really, it’s important!”

“Let’s be honest. We have to connect on all these levels that make best friends best friends, but we’re a little more than best friends, too. We gotta want to rip each other’s clothes off, you know?”

Got that. Centineo is immensely busy now as he’s also in the “Charlie’s Angels” reboot and rumored to be attached to the “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” reboot playing, of course, He-Man.

Perhaps it’s also interesting to note that the buzz about Centineo has led to people discovering a role he played before “To All the Boys.”

Right before all this craziness, Centineo appeared in the music video for the red-hot Camila Cabello song “Havana.” First appearing in silhouette at the 6:40 mark, Centineo is dapperly dressed, wears his hair slicked back and then shares a hot dance with Cabello against a classic car. The saucy video was already heavily viewed but the now red-hot profile of Centineo had led to a stampede back to the video with comments like “Who is here for Noah Centineo?” The video now has over 755 million views on YouTube. In fact, Centineo has directed a music video; ARTY’s “Save Me Tonight,” starring Lily Collins.

“I think it’s a really great music video,” Centineo said. “Camila is exceptionally talented. Everyone working on it made the video feel like a short film. It doesn’t shock me that people want to watch it again and again. The fact that they’re going back to see it for me is cool because it’s a completely different character. I look completely different.” He says he was playing the part as if he were a drug dealer—“a bad, bad guy, and this is his muse. I think it’s tight though.”

With his star on the rise, Noah Centineo, the Internet’s boyfriend wants to do more than play boyfriends: “On a personal level, hopefully it helps people look at me and maybe the roles I can play and expand my horizons a little bit.”

“The Perfect Date” is now streaming on Netflix.