It’s been more than 12 years since Wizards of Waverly Place ended in 2012 after four seasons, but when stars Selena Gomez and David Henrie reunited for the spin-off Wizards of Waverly Place, it was as if no time had passed.
“It felt like I was back home,” Gomez told me Thursday at the season four premiere of “Only Murders in the Building” in Hollywood. “I’m so happy that I was able to pass on this gift that I was given as a child to the little ones out there.”
When the original Wizards series ended, Gomez never imagined she would play Alex Russo again. But now she hopes the spinoff will run for multiple seasons. “We don’t know, but if people like it, we’ll see,” she said.
David Henrie, who reprises his role as Alex’s brother Justin, told me, “Selena, my wife and I spent so much time over the years drinking wine and talking about where the characters would be that at one point we looked at each other and said, ‘I think we have a show. I think we should talk to Disney about it.’ And we did. It took years of development to get it exactly where it should be.
“It was born out of love,” he continued. “The thing Selena is asked about the most to this day is ‘Wizards.’ It’s a show that meant a lot to a lot of people.”
Gomez announced the spinoff during Disney’s 2024 upfront presentation in May. At the same time, images from the show were released showing adult versions of Alex and Justin, as well as new members of the Russo family.
David Henrie attends the season four premiere of Hulu’s “Only Murders In The Building” at Paramount Studios on August 22, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
Michael Buckner
“It was crazy,” Henrie said of working with Gomez again. “It was unspoken, but we were behind a door and we heard ‘Action,’ and we looked at each other and thought, ‘This is crazy.’ It was like not a day had gone by in 12 years. We were right back where we were.”
Wizards: Beyond Waverly Place follows adult Justin, who has decided to live a normal, mortal life with his family, Giada (Mimi Gianopulos), Roman (Alkaio Thiele), and Milo (Max Matenko). When Alex brings Billie (Janice LeAnn Brown) to his house for help, Justin agrees to mentor the sorceress-in-training while still fulfilling his everyday duties and securing the future of the wizarding world.
Henrie is also looking forward to the potential of further seasons: “It’s such a fertile universe. You could do so much with it.”
Henrie uses his original wand in the spin-off. When the show ended in 2012, producers gave the cast members the glass-framed wands as a graduation gift. “I thought, I’m going to pull this thing out again,” Henrie said.
