NEED TO KNOW
David Henrie has some thoughts on how he wants Wizards Beyond Waverly Place to end.
While the show is just getting started with its second season, when the series does one day conclude, he wants the story of his character, Justin Russo, and Selena Gomez’s Alex Russo “to be dealt with very carefully,” he tells PEOPLE while on the set.
The actor, 36, who leads the Wizards of Waverly Place spinoff and serves as executive producer alongside Gomez, 33, knows that Justin and Alex “are a model of sibling relationships.” For that reason, he says, “I hope that their eventual finale will embrace their age, their state in life where they’re at.”
Bob D’Amico/Disney Channel/Getty
Henrie continues, “Because I think as we get older, families go their separate ways and everyone starts doing their own thing, but that bond is always there and should always be there.”
He might not have the exact specifics, but he knows what he wants the core message to be. “I hope that we can repackage a beautiful sibling message, factoring in where they’re at in life now,” he says.
Season 1 of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place saw Justin take the young wizard Billie (played by Janice LeAnn Brown) under his wing and into his family. Meanwhile, his wife Giada (Mimi Gianopulos) and sons Roman (Alkaio Thiele) and Milo (Max Matenko) had no idea of their dad’s magical past.
Eric McCandless/disney
In season 2, the boys also have powers, and Justin is training Billie, Roman and Milo to compete in the Family Wizard Competition. The contest was a central plot line in Wizards of Waverly Place, which ran from 2007 to 2012 on Disney Channel. “It’s just like the original show, season 1. Now it really starts,” Henrie tells PEOPLE.
While the kids’ aunt Alex made occasional appearances in the first season, her character was brought up frequently. Gomez also guest stars in the second season.
Henrie also tells PEOPLE that working with Gomez so closely on the series has made some “slight changes” to their friendship. “We’ve never really talked business or professionally about anything. It’s always just been really on a friend level. So it’s been kind of fun getting to talk about something we both really care about and try to make that thing as good as we can.”
Mark Von Holden/Disney
Further, Henries adds that Gomez has had “great ideas.”
“I’ve gotten to see a different side of her and how her brain works in a more professional setting, which is wonderful. She really has had such good instincts, and her belief in the project and in everyone means a lot.”
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The entire second season of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place season 2 will be available to stream on Disney+ on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
