Wizards of Waverly Place fans divided over plot of new reboot series

23 January 2024, 14:38

Selena Gomez and David Henrie tease Wizards reunion

By Sam Prance

Instead of focusing on the Russo family as a whole, Disney's Wizards of Waverly Place reboot will centre around Justin Russo and a whole new generation of wizards.

Wizards of Waverly Place is officially returning but fans are now split over the premise of the upcoming reboot with David Henrie.

Last week (Jan 18), Deadline confirmed that Disney have ordered a pilot for a Wizards of Waverly Place revival. The show will centre on an adult Justin Russo who's "left his wizard powers behind, opting for a normal, human life with his wife and two sons." However, Justin is thrust back into the wizarding world when he meets a powerful young wizard in need of help.

Selena Gomez will also executive produce the series and guest-star in the pilot episode as Alex Russo. However, the rest of the original Wizards cast are yet to join the reboot and it's currently unclear if/how involved they will be in the new series.

As a result, some Wizards fans are now concerned that Disney's new reboot will fail to live up to the original family show.

READ MORE: Former Wizards of Waverly Place cast react to not knowing about sequel series

Reacting to the plot of the reboot and how it will focus on new characters, one fan tweeted: "We need a grown up wizards of waverly place what’s the point of reviving a show to make it for kids who weren’t even born when the OG was airing. Reviving a show surely means you want your OG viewers back."

Another fan expressed concern that the reboot is about Justin and he isn't even a wizard in the show. They wrote: "It should've been a revival catering to the OG audience that's what made iCarly so special and successful."

There's also backlash to the fact that Jake T. Austin, who played Justin and Alex's younger brother Max, is currently yet to be mentioned in any official reboot discussions.

Elsewhere, Justin is not married to his childhood sweetheart Juliet (Bridgit Mendler) but a new character instead.

Nevertheless, others are just happy that Wizards is coming back and Selena is reprising her role for an episode.

One person tweeted: "wizards of waverly place is actually one of the best shows disney ever produced because a GOOD CHUNK of it still holds up to this day. its still fun and entertaining and attention grabbing like if they get the same writers i WILL be there for every step of that reboot."

Another wrote: "WAIT Wizards of Waverly Place IS GETTING A REBOOT!?!?? THAT MEANS IM GETTING ALEX RUSSO BACK."

David Henrie has since reassured fans that this is only the pilot and he intends to bring back more fan favourite characters if the series gets picked up. On Instagram, David wrote: "We definitely plan on bringing back the original cast for the series order."

In other words, Max and many other original cast members could still be part of the show.

What do you think? Are you excited for the Wizards reboot?

Read more about Wizards of Waverly Place here:

• Jennifer Stone reveals Selena Gomez declined a Wizards of Waverly Place spin-off
• Wizards of Waverly Place boss confirms Alex and Stevie were meant to be a couple
• Selena Gomez says her biggest mistake is losing touch with the Wizards of Waverly Place cast
• The Wizards of Waverly Place pilot was originally "completely different"

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