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Wizards of Waverly Place is an American fantasy teen sitcom created by Todd J. Greenwald that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between October 2007 and January 2012. The series centers on Alex Russo (portrayed by Selena Gomez), a teenage wizard living in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, who undertakes training alongside her siblings, Justin and Max, who are also equipped with magical abilities. The siblings are trained with the knowledge that one day, they will compete to win sole custody of their family's powers. Episodes deal with Alex's challenges in keeping her secret powers hidden, while she deals with the social and personal issues of adolescence. She frequently uses magic in her everyday life, sometimes irresponsibly, and hones her supernatural abilities while doing so. While the series contains fantasy elements, the main themes depicted include the focus on family, friendship, and growing up.

The Walt Disney Company created the series to follow on from its successful line of comedy series in the 2000s, including Lizzie McGuire, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and Hannah Montana. It was produced by It's a Laugh Productions, and premiered on Disney Channel on October 12, 2007. A made-for-television film adaptation, Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie aired on the network in 2009 and was awarded a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program in 2010. The program last aired on January 6, 2012, ending to allow its actors to move towards more mature roles. After its conclusion, the cast returned for a stand-alone television special entitled The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex, which was released in 2013. All seasons have been distributed through digital download and on streaming service Disney+.

Wizards of Waverly Place received consistently high viewership in the United States on broadcast television and influenced the development of merchandise, a soundtrack album and video game adaptations. Television critics praised the show for its humor and cast; Gomez's affiliation with the network led to a prominent musical career outside of the program. The program won two additional Emmys for Outstanding Children's Program in 2009 and 2012, as well as two Artios Awards from the Casting Society of America between 2009 and 2012, for Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Children's Series Programming. Its series finale was the most-watched final episode of any Disney Channel show.

Premise

Story and characters

Alex, Justin and Max Russo are three teenage wizards-in-training living in an apartment on Waverly Place in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. Their father Jerry Russo, a former wizard, provides his children with daily lessons in their secret lair on how to use magic responsibly. He administers this training in his spare time away from running the family business, a sandwich shop designed to look like a subway station, on the ground level of their apartment building, along with his wife, Theresa. According to the rules of the "Wizard World", once they complete their training, the Russo children will compete to determine which sibling will permanently retain their powers, and become the sole family wizard. Since the other children will eventually lose their powers, Jerry tries to teach them not to become dependent on magic. Jerry descends from a family of wizards, and won his own family's competition as a teenager, but relinquished his powers when he married Theresa, a mortal. His powers were transferred to his older brother, Kelbo. Alex must keep her powers hidden from her best friend, Harper Finkle, which causes occasional strain on their relationship. As a result, Alex reveals her secret to Harper in the second season, however, the existence of wizards must remain hidden to the wider mortal world.

In the third season, Harper moves in to live with the Russo family, and Max's efforts to win the family wizard competition become more serious. Leading into the fourth season, Alex and Justin are both tricked into exposing the existence of wizards to government officials and a group of reporters. It is revealed that the whole scenario was a test devised as part of their training, and consequently, Alex and Justin are demoted to lower positions in the family competition. Alex is overwhelmed by her loss of progress and quits; she later rejoins to continue dating her werewolf boyfriend, Mason Greyback. Meanwhile, Justin adopts the role of tutor for a group of delinquent wizards, which assists him in recovering his position in the competition. At the conclusion of the series, the siblings compete to see who will maintain their supernatural abilities. Alex wins the family wizard competition and is awarded full magic powers, while Justin is also allowed to retain his abilities when he assumes the role of headmaster at WizTech, a boarding school for young wizards-in-training. Max loses his powers and is instead sanctioned to become the new manager of the family's sandwich shop.

Themes

The series deals with themes of secret identities. It explores the fantasy that children may experience of wanting magical powers, in the same way that Hannah Montana explores the fantasy of being a pop star. Stories about children with magical powers were previously made popular by series such as Sabrina the Teenage Witch and the Harry Potter franchise, with a trend towards the fantasy television genre. Episodes of Wizards of Waverly Place typically show the Russo children using magic as a means to quickly solve an issue in their personal lives, but they learn not to become dependent on their powers. The children attempt to live life normally; the show presents the idea that life can be enjoyable without magic. Conflicts in the series arise from Alex's struggle to balance both her private and public life. In an essay, Colin Ackerman analysed that the concept of magic in the series is an example of social privilege, and that the Russo children are encouraged to keep their advantage hidden and private. The stories of the program center around family, friends and growing up. The Russo family are depicted as a working class family. They run a family business in the service industry. Jerry and Theresa teach their children the importance of family, hard work and responsibility. The series explores the link between magic and family heritage. The Russo family have a mixed background of Italian, Mexican and American, and while they celebrate traditions such as the Quinceañera, their culture is not prominently featured in most episodes.

Production

Development

In the early 2000s, The Walt Disney Company found success through its pay television network Disney Channel with a pattern of original comedy series for a tween and family audience, such as Lizzie McGuire, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and Hannah Montana. The network planned to build on these successes with a new comedy series aimed at girls. Wizards of Waverly Place was created by Todd J. Greenwald, who had previously worked on the first season of Hannah Montana. He had also worked on a pilot for NBC; Disney hired him after they saw the pilot. Greenwald adopted the network's idea of a show centering on a family of wizards. The setting of the series is inspired by Waverly Place in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. Greenwald wanted to produce a series for children that was set away from the "beaches and sunshine" of Los Angeles. Peter Murrieta had previously been working on the sitcom Hope & Faith in New York City, and relocated to Los Angeles, before being approached by Disney to assist in developing the series. When Murrieta joined the project as an executive producer, it was titled The Amazing O'Malleys; he thought that they would only be producing a pilot. He had never produced a show targeted towards tweens before and was apprehensive about being involved. Murrieta helped guide the writing and casting throughout the development process, and re-wrote the pilot. Adam Bonnett, a Disney Channel programming executive, cited the influence of sitcoms Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie on the series.

Hundreds of applicants auditioned for the role of central role, before Selena Gomez was brought in by Disney executives. Gomez was discovered by the network at an open casting call in Austin, Texas at age twelve, and went on to appear in guest capacities on Disney Channel programs including The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. She filmed two pilots for the network, Arwin! (a spin-off of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody), and Stevie Sanchez (a spin-off of Lizzie McGuire), however, neither of these series were green-lit by the network. Disney saw potential in Gomez and wanted her to star in a full series. The producers of Wizards were asked to audition Gomez and she was ultimately successful. The unaired pilot was set in a magic store and featured only two siblings, Jordan and Julia. The show was green-lit after this pilot. After Gomez was cast and moved to Los Angeles, she appeared in a guest role on Hannah Montana as part of cross-promotion for the new series; Wizards would go on to air in a timeslot after its peer series. Gomez was attached to the series by February 2007, as well as David Henrie and Jake T. Austin; the characters were named Brooke, Sully and Max O'Malley at this stage. In March 2007, the network officially announced Disney's Wizards as an upcoming half-hour live-action comedy to premiere in the fall. At the time of the announcement, the characters were named Alexa, Aaron and Max Esposito. Greenwald and Murrieta would serve as executive producers; Murrieta claimed that he changed the family's surname to Russo and made the children mixed-race.

Casting

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   3.9 +a-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez

|rowspan="2"|Year in Television – Comedy Actress |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |- |data-sort-value="Canals-Barrera, Maria"| Maria Canals-Barrera |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |data-sort-value="Murrieta, Peter"| Peter Murrieta |Behind The Scenes – Special Achievement Honorees |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |rowspan="3"|2011 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Favorite TV Actress – Leading Role in a Comedy |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="3"| |- |data-sort-value="Canals-Barrera, Maria"| Maria Canals-Barrera |Favorite TV Actress – Supporting Role |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Favorite TV Series |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- !scope="row" rowspan="5"|Artios Awards |2008 |data-sort-value="Lambert, Ruth & McGee, Robert" rowspan="5"| Ruth Lambert and Robert McGee |rowspan="5"|Outstanding Achievement in Casting: Children's Television Series Programming |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2009 |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2010 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2011 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2012 |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- !scope="row"|British Academy Children's Awards |2010 |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |BAFTA Kids' Vote: TV |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- !scope="row"|Directors Guild of America |2008 |data-sort-value="Savage, Fred (for "Crazy 10-Minute Sale")"| Fred Savage (for "Crazy 10-Minute Sale") |Children's Programming |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- !scope="row"|Gracie Awards |2010 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Outstanding Female Rising Star in a Comedy Series |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;" | |- !scope="row" rowspan="9"|Imagen Awards |rowspan="2"|2008 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Best Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Canals-Barrera, Maria "| Maria Canals-Barrera |Best Supporting Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |rowspan="2"|2010 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Best Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Canals-Barrera, Maria"| Maria Canals-Barrera |Best Supporting Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |rowspan="2"|2011 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Best Young Actress – Television |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Canals-Barrera, Maria"| Maria Canals-Barrera |Best Supporting Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |2012 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Best Young Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2013 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena (for The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex)"| Selena Gomez (for The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex) |Best Actress – Television |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex"| The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex |Best Children's Programming |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- !scope="row" rowspan="5"|NAACP Image Awards |2009 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena" rowspan="3"| Selena Gomez |rowspan="3"|Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children’s Program - Series or Special |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2010 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2011 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place | Outstanding Children's Program |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |2012 |data-sort-value="Cheung, Vince & Montanio, Ben (for "Wizards vs. Angels")"| Vince Cheung and Ben Montanio (for "Wizards vs. Angels") |Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- !scope="row" rowspan="5"|Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (Australia) |2009 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena" rowspan="2"| Selena Gomez |Fave International TV Star |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2010 |Fave TV Star |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Fave TV Show |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2011 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Fave TV Star |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Fave TV Show |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |- !scope="row" rowspan="2"|Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (Mexico) |2010 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Favorite International Female Personality |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2011 |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Favorite International Program |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- !scope="row" rowspan="12"|Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (United States) |2009 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena" rowspan="2"| Selena Gomez |Favorite Television Actress |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2010 |Favorite Television Actress |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Favorite TV Show |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="3"|2011 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Favorite Television Actress |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |data-sort-value="Henrie, David"| David Henrie |Funniest TV Sidekick |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Favorite TV Show |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |rowspan="3"|2012 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Favorite Television Actress |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |data-sort-value="Stone, Jennifer"| Jennifer Stone |Funniest TV Sidekick |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Favorite TV Show |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |rowspan="3"|2013 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Favorite Television Actress |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |data-sort-value="Austin, Jake T."| Jake T. Austin |Favorite Television Actor |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Favorite TV Show |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- !scope="row" rowspan="5"|Primetime Emmy Awards |2009 |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place" rowspan="3"| Wizards of Waverly Place |rowspan="3"|Outstanding Children's Program |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2010 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2011 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |data-sort-value="Gunter, Rick Frank (for "Dancing with Angels")"| Rick Frank Gunter (for "Dancing with Angels") |Outstanding Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2012 |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Outstanding Children's Program |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;"| |- !scope="row"|Shanghai Television Festival |2010 |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Magnolia Award for Best Television Film or Miniseries |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" | |- !scope="row" rowspan="5"|Teen Choice Awards |2009 |data-sort-value="Austin, Jake T."| Jake T. Austin |Choice TV: Sidekick |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" | |- |rowspan="2"|2010 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Choice TV Actress: Comedy |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;" | |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Choice TV Show: Comedy |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" | |- |rowspan="2"|2011 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Choice TV Actress: Comedy |style="background: #9EFF9E; color: #000; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="yes table-yes2 notheme"|Won |style="text-align:center;" | |- |data-sort-value="Wizards of Waverly Place"| Wizards of Waverly Place |Choice TV Show: Comedy |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" | |- !scope="row" rowspan="7"|Young Artist Awards |2008 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez, David Henrie, Jennifer Stone and Jake T. Austin |Best Young Ensemble Performance in a TV Series |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2009 |data-sort-value="Gomez, Selena"| Selena Gomez |Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) – Leading Young Actress |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Austin, Jake T." rowspan="2"| Jake T. Austin |Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) – Leading Young Actor |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |2010 |Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) – Leading Young Actor |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |2011 |data-sort-value="Thorne, Bella"| Bella Thorne |Best Performance in a TV Series – Guest Starring Young Actress 11–15 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;"| |- |rowspan="2"|2012 |data-sort-value="Mendler, Bridgit"| Bridgit Mendler |Best Performance in a TV Series – Recurring Young Actress 17–21 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| |- |data-sort-value="Benet, L.J."| L.J. Benet |Best Performance in a TV Series – Guest Starring Young Actor 14–17 |style="background: #FFE3E3; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="no table-no2 notheme"|Nominated |- |}

Other media

Films and specials

Disney Channel asked the executive team of the series, including Murrieta and Greenwald, to adapt the series into a made-for-television film. Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie aired on the network on August 28, 2009, and starred Gomez, Henrie, Austin, Stone, Canals-Barrera and DeLuise. The movie was filmed on location in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and depicts the Russo family on a Caribbean vacation. In the film, which was written by Dan Berendsen, Alex unintentionally performs a magic spell which alters history so that her parents have never met. The movie received 11.4 million viewers, and won a Primetime Emmy Award in 2010 for Outstanding Children's Program. A second television movie was ordered in June 2010, scheduled to enter production in 2011, however in 2012, Austin stated that the film had been cancelled due to the advancing careers of the cast. The screenplay was to be again written by Berendsen.

It was reported in September 2012 that an hour-long television special, entitled The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex would be produced for the network, with Gomez in an executive producer role alongside Cheung, Dan Cross and David Hoge. Gomez, Austin, Stone, Canals-Barrera, DeLuise and Sulkin returned for the special, which began filming in October in Los Angeles. The film depicts the Russo family travelling to Tuscany, Italy to meet with relatives, before Alex accidentally casts a spell which creates a "good" and "evil" Alex. The screenplay was written by Cheung, Montanio and Berendsen, and directed by Victor Gonzalez. The film premiered on March 15, 2013, and was viewed by 5.9 million.

A Malaysian adaptation of the series, titled Wizards of Warna Walk, premiered on Disney Channel in Southeast Asia on August 30, 2019. The series ran for 14 episodes and was filmed at Pinewood Studios in Johor, across two months. Set in Kuala Lumpur, the adaptation was designed to incorporate local actors, music compositions, Malaysian language and Asian values. Network executives considered adapting other series such as Hannah Montana, but ultimately found that Wizards resonated the best with test audiences. Wizards of Warna Walk was broadcast in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.

Merchandising

DVD compilations of the series were planned by January 2008. The first, entitled Wizard School was released on July 29, 2008, followed by Supernaturally Stylin', released on February 10, 2009. Both titles featured episodes from the program's first and second seasons. A soundtrack album for the series was released by Walt Disney Records on August 4, 2009, including songs from and inspired by the series and film. Two video games based on the series, Wizards of Waverly Place and Wizards of Waverly Place: Spellbound, were released on the Nintendo DS in August 2009 and November 2010, respectively.

Rumored revival

The possibility of a reunion series has been expressed by the main cast members since 2017. In August 2020, Henrie commented that all key actors were open to producing a revival of the series. He clarified that formal discussions with Disney had not yet occurred.

Greenwald stated in October 2017 that he would like to see Wizards of Waverly Place continue with a high-budget feature film in the vein of Harry Potter. He also shared an idea for a prequel series which would follow Jerry as he attended WizTech in his high school years, and would feature his siblings. Henrie suggested that the revival could revolve around a disconnected Russo family, several years later, who are all finding success separately but must learn to come together again.

References

Notes

1. Greenwald named the characters after his children, but altered these to avoid confusion with the series Just Jordan. He named the character Justin after his own middle name.
2. The movie was credited as the second most-viewed cable TV film broadcast of all time, behind High School Musical 2.

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External links

• Official website
• Wizards of Waverly Place at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com show
• Wizards of Waverly Place at TV Guide

• Wizards of Waverly Place
• 2000s American teen sitcoms
• 2010s American teen sitcoms
• 2007 American television series debuts
• 2012 American television series endings
• Disney Channel original programming
• Emmy Award-winning programs
• English-language television shows
• American fantasy television series
• Wizards in television
• Television shows set in New York City
• Television about magic
• Television series about families
• Television series by It's a Laugh Productions
• Latino sitcoms
• Hispanic and Latino American television