Selena Gomez to return in ‘Wizards Of Waverly’ place sequel series – and fans are feeling nostalgic

19 January, 2024

Disney‘s Wizards Of Waverly Place is set to return for a sequel series, with Selena Gomez reprising her role as Alex Russo.

The Disney Channel fantasy sitcom, which helped launch Gomez’s career, originally ran from 2007 to 2012.

As reported by Deadline, Disney has now ordered a pilot for a reboot of the series, which will also see David Henrie return as Gomez’s onscreen sibling Justin.

The pair are joined by new cast members Janice LeAnn Brown (Disney’s Just Roll with It), Alkaio Thiele (Call Me Kat) and Mimi Gianopulos (American Princess).

The original Wizards Of Waverly Place followed a group of teenage wizards living on the titular street in New York’s Greenwich Village.

The new series will reportedly pick up its story after a mysterious incident at WizTech, where an adult Justin Russo has neglected his wizard powers in favour of pursuing a normal, human life with his wife and two sons.

However, he’s soon drawn back into the world of magic when a powerful young wizard in need of training shows up at his door, and Justin realises he must embrace his past to secure the future of the Wizard World.

The revival pilot comes from writers and executive producers Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas, who are behind another Disney Channel comedy spin-off, Raven’s Home.

“Ohhhh we are sooo back to our childhoods,” wrote one excited fan on X/Twitter in response to the news. Another posted: “I hope the show is able to appeal to both kids and adults. It be cool if the show could be like how the icarly reboot was.”

Last year, Gomez told her Wizards Of Waverly Place co-stars that her “biggest mistake” was losing touch with them.

Gomez made the confession while appearing on the Wizards Of Waverly Pod podcast with her former co-stars Jennifer Stone and David DeLuise – who played her best friend and father, respectively.

During a Q&A segment, Gomez was asked what her “biggest mistake” was, to which she replied: “Probably not staying in touch with you guys.”

“I felt ashamed of the decisions that I made,” the Only Murders in the Building star said. “I didn’t want you guys to see me in the state that I was in because A, you would have told me the truth which terrifies me, and B, I didn’t want to let you down.”

DeLuise replied: “That’s really sweet and thank you for saying that. We obviously… I miss you and I’m happy you’re doing well now.”

Stone, meanwhile, opened up about how she felt when their relationship seemingly came to an end.

“I appreciate you saying that too,” she said. “To be perfectly blunt, there has been times where I’m like … ‘Did we stop being friends because I didn’t tell her what she wanted to hear,’ you know what I mean… so I appreciate you being here.”

“I appreciate you guys dearly and I love you so much in a way that I’ve never loved anybody else,” Gomez added.

In other news, Gomez is reportedly set to portray veteran musician Linda Ronstadt in an upcoming biopic.

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