David Henrie Says Filming ‘Wizards Beyond Waverly Place’ With Selena Gomez Felt Like “Not A Day Had Passed”

All of us Disney Channel kids who grew up in the early to mid-aughts remember where we were when David Henrie announced that he and Selena Gomez would be partnering up for a Wizards of Waverly Place sequel series more than a decade after the original sitcom ended. As part of the network’s heyday, Wizards of Waverly Place followed the three Russo siblings as they navigated their teenage years while simultaneously being wizards in training. While they’re all grown up now, it’s clear that the chemistry between onscreen siblings Henrie and Gomez is ever-present. And with a new group of kids added to the mix, there’s plenty of room for Wizards Beyond Waverly Place to reach younger generations all while, as Henrie put it, giving a “warm hug” to all of us OG fans.

The new series, which premieres on Disney Channel tonight before heading to Disney+ tomorrow, follows a grown-up Justin (Henrie) as he lives a normal life in Staten Island with his wife and two sons. However, his secret past of being a wizard is ultimately outed when his troublemaking sister Alex (Gomez) shows up at his house and asks him to take a young powerful wizard named Billie (Janice LeAnn Brown) under his wing.

The first episode is chock-full of callbacks to the original series, like when they subtly reveal that the youngest Russo sibling Max (Jake T. Austin) became a millionaire franchising the family sandwich shop, or when Justin and Alex step back into the family’s iconic lair for the first time.

“Everything you could hope for, we felt,” Henrie said of the “magical” moment, revealing that production even used the “real couches” from the original set. “You could probably find Selena and I’s initials on there somewhere, carved into something.”

Brown, for her part, gets to work with two of Disney Channel’s most memorable stars. The young actress lovingly admitted that Henrie was “kind of like a dad” to her, while she compared Gomez to a “really cool aunt” or a “big sister.”

“I just feel so very blessed to be in this position that I am in and just have to give the Lord his flowers every single day because I’m just like, ‘Wow. I’m working with Selena Gomez and David Henrie. This is cray cray,'” Brown said.

We caught up with Henrie and Brown via Zoom, where they dished on all things Wizards Beyond Waverly Place. Check out the full interview below.

DECIDER: David, I want to start with you. As someone who was 7 when the original Wizards came out, there were so many moments in the reboot that gave me chills, particularly when you and Selena stepped back into the lair for the first time. What was it like for you two to film that scene?

DAVID HENRIE: Everything you could hope for, we felt. Getting to go back on a set that we had spent so much time in and had so many memories in was crazy. We used to take naps on those couches, and those are the real couches. They found those couches sitting in a warehouse somewhere and brought them back, dusted them off. Those are the real things. You could probably find Selena and I’s initials on there somewhere, carved into something. It was crazy.

We would sit there and watch all our wonderful guest stars from the original show walk by, like The Rock and Cindy Crawford and Shakira and all of these people. We have so many memories there. Yes, it was absolutely magical, and it was great to get to reprise our characters and act again. Honestly, it was like not a day had passed. We’re just older now, but it felt like we’ve been doing the show ever since, like, there was no break. 

That’s what it seemed like watching it. It felt like your characters didn’t skip a beat, and they were the same characters I remember growing up with.

DAVID: That means a lot. Thank you. The goal for Selena and I both was really to give a warm hug to the original show, but hopefully create such a powerful feeling that the original fan watching it will want to recreate the experience they might have had with their parents watching the original show and invite a young person in. Maybe invite their kid they’re having now. I have three kids. A lot of millennials that are having kids now – invite their kid in, or a niece and nephew, or a cousin, or someone they’re babysitting. I hope the original fan will feel that love and be like, “You know what? I want to share this with a younger person like I had when I was a kid.”

Janice, I’m so excited for you to be in this reboot. Would you say that Billie is a bit of an Alex 2.0? And how much inspiration did you draw from that character?

JANICE LEANN BROWN: I drew in a little bit. I will say Billie definitely does have some similarities to Alex. But at the same time, she’s her own person. She’s Billie, you know what I mean? Of course, she does have similarities to Alex. I think Alex sees herself in Billie a lot. I think she dropped Billie off to Justin to kind of tease him a bit because it’s like he has to go through it again, a new generation, a new era of it all. I did take a little bit of inspiration from it, but I think, in a way, I  just kind of acted how I thought Billie would act.

David, you have teased a lot of cameos from David DeLuise to Maria, who played your on-screen parents, and now Greg Sulkin. Was there anyone you were most excited to reunite with? And is there anyone who hasn’t come back yet that you would like to work with again?

DAVID: At some point, I would really like everyone to come back. Anyone who has availability in their schedule, we would love to get them back. The best way to do it is to make it integrate seamlessly in the story. So not just an obligatory wave from someone doing a cameo, but in a way that feels really meaningful. Selena, in the first episode, that’s such an important part of the story. It all worked so organically and helped launch the series. We hope all the characters who come back will play similar roles in the show in terms of contributing to the story and not just servicing fans, although we know we need to service fans, and that’s a really important thing to do. But servicing them in a meaningful way is the most important thing, because people feel if you’re being disingenuous. 

Janice, you get to work with some of Disney Channel’s most iconic stars. What was your favorite part about getting to work with David and Selena both on-screen and off-screen as executive producers?

JANICE: It was very fun because they kind of like – especially, David, he’s kind of like a dad to me in a way. With Selena, she’s like a really cool aunt. No digs at you, no digs at you. Or, like, a big sister in a way. I think it’s great I have them in my village as well because they’re very experienced. With all the advice, it’s just a lot of wisdom that I can take out of it that I can [be] very useful in my career. I just feel so very blessed to be in this position that I am in and just have to give the Lord his flowers every single day because I’m just like, “Wow. I’m working with Selena Gomez and David Henrie. This is cray cray.”

And you guys all have such great chemistry, too, on the show. Was it like that right off the bat for you guys? 

DAVID: Yeah, and it’s important. One of the things that I take very seriously is just trying to create a good atmosphere and culture so everyone feels safe and supported. That way, they can have chemistry. You’re allowed to make mistakes. They’re encouraged, in fact. If you make mistakes, you know, fail quickly. We love that. Do it. Do it quick and do it big because then it means you’re trying things, which means you’re comfortable. So we welcome all of that. No one is defined by their mistakes on set. So it’s been good. It’s been really good. And I think it’s working out well. I’m excited for everyone to see it. 

Question for both of you: what was your favorite episode to film and why? 

DAVID: There’s been some meaningful ones. I particularly love the ones where you and I  have a nice father-daughter moment, a nice heartfelt moment. Part of what made the original show special was we went there with heartfelt moments, where I think other kid shows might have backed off, or not dove so deep into the heart or the philosophy or the meaning. We really went there at times. We went deep. And we’ve been doing that on this show. I’m excited for fans to see those episodes. It’s in the first episode, it’s in the second episode. It’s in lots of them all throughout. I’m excited for them to see those moments because I think it is a callback to what we did nicely in the first show. 

JANICE: I totally agree with him. It just feels super safe and everything. Man, every episode that we filmed. I feel like I don’t really have a favorite. All of them are very meaningful to me so he pretty much said everything.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

The first two episodes of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place will premiere on Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 8:00 p.m. E.T. on Disney Channel. The first nine episodes will begin streaming on Disney+ and Disney Channel On Demand the next day.