Posted in: Disney+, TV | Tagged: wizards beyond waverly place
Wizards Beyond Waverly Place: OG Series Creator Definitely Not a Fan
Original series creator Todd Greenwald isn’t exactly hiding his feelings about Wizards Beyond Waverly Place and how he would handle its canon.
Earlier this week, EPs Selena Gomez and David Henrie returned with Disney Channel’s Wizards Beyond Waverly Place, the four-part finale to the sequel series that also had some impact on the overall canon/lore. We’re not going to dive into any spoilers, but let’s just say that some characters’ fates were left with question marks, a whole lot of storylines were left open for future exploration down the road (another sequel series, possibly a move, maybe a spinoff), and one original character’s fate hit OG fans pretty hard. One person who doesn’t sound too happy about the sequel series is Wizards of Waverly Place creator Todd Greenwald, who didn’t exactly mince words when it came to what he thought of “Beyond.”
“I will undo the entire Beyond canon in one simple chapter. By simply ignoring it. “It was all Max’s dreammmmm.” Fixed. Moving on,” Greenwald posted on his Substack in response to the sequel series and how it wrapped up its run, giving us the distinct impression that he’s none-too-happy about how things have gone down. Honestly, how often do you see creative folks hitting social media to say that they’re going to dismissively wipe clean the work of another creative team? But Greenwald wanted to make it clear that none of this has to do with the young actors who starred in the project.
“I would also like to make it clear. The actors on the new show are amazing. They’re amazing kids. They have amazing families, and they’ve got great futures ahead. It is a blessing that they had this experience and can still be kids and have a great memory to look back on. I would work with any of them any day,” Greenwald added. “This is the sixth tween show I’ve written on, and I’ve seen how it affects the kids in different ways. Learning as you go and finding your voice in front of so many people is challenging enough in itself, let alone having to portray a character you know nothing about.”
The series starred David Henrie (as Justin Russo), Janice LeAnn Brown (as Billie), Alkaio Thiele (as Roman Russo), Max Matenko (as Milo Russo), Taylor Cora (as Winter), and Mimi Gianopulos (as Giada Russo). Brandon Micheal Hall guest-starred as Damien Penwulf, Billie’s father. He joined the previously announced guest cast of Jennifer Stone (Harper Finkle), Gregg Sulkin (Mason Greyback), Maria Canals-Barrera (Theresa Russo), Ramon Reed (Silas Evilini), and Tobias Jelinek(Lord Morsus). EP Selena Gomez made her directorial debut with the premiere episode, and reprised her role as Alex Russo in multiple episodes.
Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas serve as writers and executive producers, along with executive producers Gary Marsh, Jonas Agin, Rick Williams, Gomez, and Henrie. Created by Todd Greenwald, Wizards of Waverly Place ran from 2007 to 2012, following the Russo family, where three siblings navigated the challenges of adolescence while mastering their magical abilities. All episodes are available on Disney+ in the U.S. and select international markets on Wednesday, August 5th.
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