The Wizards Of Waverly Place Reboot Drama, Explained
Everything is not what it seems.
The Russo family is back... kind of. The Wizards of Waverly Place reboot — called Wizards Beyond Waverly Place — follows Justin Russo (played by David Henrie) as he becomes a mentor to a young wizard after giving up his powers to pursue a normal life. While promoting the show, Henrie shaded a previous Wizards cast member, and things have only gotten messier since.
In a video for Buzzfeed, Henrie was asked to choose which recurring Wizards of Waverly Place character he’d like to see on the reboot. His options included Juliet van Heusen, Mason Greybeck, Stevie Nichols, Gigi Hollingsworth, Hugh Normous, and Zeke Beakerman. While looking over the choices, Henrie said, “I can’t believe you put one of these people one here.”
“Millennials understand that,” Henrie added. When he read the names aloud, it became clear whom he was referring to. Zeke Beakerman, played by Dan Benson, got a round of laughs from the cast. Benson was cast as Henrie’s best friend on the original show, but has since pursued a career on OnlyFans after his nudes were leaked online.
After the shady moment went viral, Benson addressed the shade. “David Henrie can suck my d*ck. I’ll pay him more than they paid me for Wizards I promise you that,” Benson wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Oct. 30.
Later that day, Benson shared that Henrie had blocked him. In an Instagram video, Benson pretended to cry in front of a screenshot of Henrie’s X account. “We pretend to be best friends for years. How could you do this to me??” Benson captioned the video.
In January, Benson spoke about feeling “conflicted” over the reboot in an interview with TMZ. “I put the chance of bringing back the character I played away when I decided to go along this path of being an adult content creator and I get it,” he said at the time. “I think that I put them in a situation where they don’t have a choice. It’s crazy to be an adult content creator and it’s crazier to do it so publicly and to be a former child actor from a Disney Channel show.”
At the time, Benson also said that he wouldn’t agree to the show even if asked. “I’ve reshaped my life and took back all those years I’d given to acting, and it felt like I had nothing left. I don’t have anything left, and I don’t love it anymore, so I don’t want to do it anymore,” he added.
