Selena Gomez and David Henrie on returning to “Wizards of Waverly Place”

More than a decade after their time Wizards of Waverly Place Having come to an end, Selena Gomez and David Henrie are returning to their magical roots for a sequel series.

The Wizards Beyond Waverly Place follows an adult Justin Russo (Henrie), who has chosen to lead a normal, mortal life with his family; that is, until his sister Alex (Gomez) introduces him to Billie (Janice LeAnn Brown), a magician-in-training who needs Justin's tutoring.

“It felt like coming home,” Gomez said The Hollywood journalist Monday at the show's Los Angeles premiere. “It was so funny because when I showed it to my mom, she literally died laughing. She says, “You two still have it.” Because I think we bring that out in each other.

In addition to appearing on screen, both Gomez and Henrie serve as executive producers on the show, bringing their experiences as child actors to the next generation.

“We've both been doing this for a long time and I think we try to bring forward our best experiences when working with young people, especially children, so for me it's absolutely at the forefront to help create an atmosphere that makes them the best they can be to be in that moment,” Henrie explained. “And it was wonderful, we picked some really talented kids, and they got better and better.”

Gomez added that she supports the young cast: “I think the only thing I can provide is the love and support that they will need during this time because I hope it's a life-changing experience.”

The couple also talked about their longtime friendship, like Wizards of Waverly Place began airing when Gomez was 15 and Henrie was 18.

“I think it's so important to me to have someone in my life who knew me before,” Gomez said of their relationship. “Most of my friends are definitely people that I've grown to love and trust, but David was there the first time I experienced something like fame, and I think he saw it and continues to see it. He will tell me the truth and I like that.

Henrie echoed, “We've been friends for a long time, and when you're friends before big events happen, I think there's that meaningful memory that you know about each other,” as Gomez joked, “It stayed with me.”

The Wizards Beyond Waverly Place will premiere Tuesday on Disney Channel and will be available Wednesday on Disney+.

Tiffany Taylor contributed to this report.

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