Wizards of Waverly Place
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 (Selena Gomez), a teenage wizard living on Waverly Place in the Greenwich Village section of New York City, who undertakes training alongside her siblings, Justin (David Henrie) and Max (Jake T. Austin), who are also equipped with magical abilities. The siblings are trained knowing that one day they will compete to win sole custody of their family's powers. Episodes focus on Alex's challenges in keeping her secret powers hidden while she deals with the social and personal issues of her youth. She frequently uses magic in her everyday life, sometimes irresponsibly, and develops her supernatural abilities over the course of the series. The main themes depicted include family, friendship, and adolescence; the series also contains fantasy elements.
For other uses, see Wizards of Waverly Place (disambiguation).Wizards of Waverly Place
"Everything Is Not What It Seems" by Selena Gomez
John Adair and Steve Hampson
United States
English
4
106 (list of episodes)
- Todd J. Greenwald
- Peter Murrieta
- Vince Cheung
- Ben Montanio
Greg A. Hampson
Rick F. Gunter
- Kris Trexler
- Pam Marshall
- Chris Poulos
22 minutes
October 12, 2007 –
January 6, 2012
The Walt Disney Company developed 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's a Laugh Productions produced the program and it 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 series ended on January 6, 2012, to allow Gomez to take on more mature roles. After its conclusion, the cast returned for a stand-alone television special, The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex, in 2013. Disney ordered a sequel series titled Wizards in March 2024, which Henrie and Gomez will both appear in.
Wizards of Waverly Place enjoyed consistently high viewership in the United States on broadcast television and tie-ins included 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 apart from the program. Wizards of Waverly Place 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 for Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Children's Series Programming – between 2009 and 2012. Its series finale was the most-watched final episode of any Disney Channel show.
Reception[edit]
Critical reception[edit]
Wizards of Waverly Place has received positive reviews for its actors and their comedic skills. Marah Eakin felt that it was a positive departure from Disney's typical series, with minimal slapstick humor but still having exaggerated acting.[1] Gomez was praised for her comic timing and sarcastic delivery; the Los Angeles Times's Mary McNamara described her portrayal of Alex as "sweet and sassy".[18][53] Additionally, McNamara believed that Justin and Max did not serve as comic relief; Jake T. Austin was called "absurdly hilarious" by blogger Mark Robinson.[18][53] The central characters were described as "cute, precocious, but far from angelic" by Garron, who said child viewers would want to watch more.[5] In addition to the cast and humor, the series' concept and themes were also praised. Critics suggested that the series capitalized on the success of the Harry Potter franchise,[54][18][53] and it was also compared to Bewitched for the similarities in their magical elements.[18] It was listed as one of Disney's best sitcoms by Robinson, who wrote that the series combined fantasy and comedy "seamlessly".[53] While the fourth season was on air, Eakin said the quality of the series had not diminished, and has a lot of heart, depth and "actual feeling".[1] McNamara praised the show for not relying on shtick or its laugh track.[18]
Some characters were criticized by reviewers; Paul Asay of Christian website Plugged In did not view Alex as a positive role model because of her rebellious nature, and the parents were described as foolish by Weiss.[11][17] Ackerman found fault with the show's contradictory messages, saying there are never consequences for the Russo children abusing their magical powers; he felt that the characters seem to forget the lessons they learn and continue to make the same mistakes. The lessons Jerry teaches about how to live life without magic were interpreted as pointless, as when the series ends, both Alex and Justin retain their abilities.[55] The setting of Greenwich Village was also problematic for Ackerman, as he suggested that the Russos, a working-class family, would not be financially able to live in one of the most expensive New York neighborhoods.[56] The show has been criticized for its predictable premise and supernatural elements, described as "less magical than milquetoast" by Weiss.[17] Reviewing the series finale, Eakin criticized the quality of the wizards' robe costuming and the use of a laugh track.[42] Critics have found fault with the program's special effects, such as the computer animation of a griffin.[11][17][42] Asay referred to the program's depiction of angels as "spiritually misleading".[11]
U.S. television ratings[edit]
Wizards of Waverly Place premiered on October 12, 2007, on the same night as the network's premiere of Twitches Too, and attracted 5.9 million viewers.[57] The one-hour series finale, "Who Will Be the Family Wizard?", aired on January 6, 2012, and became the show's most-watched episode, with an audience of 9.8 million.[58] It was the finale with the highest rating for any Disney Channel series.[58]
Other media[edit]
Films and specials[edit]
Disney Channel asked the series executive team, including Murrieta and Greenwald, to adapt the series into a made-for-television film.[28][112] Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie aired on the network on August 28, 2009, and starred Gomez, Henrie, Austin, Stone, Canals-Barrera and DeLuise.[112] It was filmed on location in San Juan, Puerto Rico,[28][112] and depicts the Russo family on a Caribbean vacation.[28] 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.[112] The broadcast had 11.4 million viewers,[113][f] and won a Primetime Emmy Award in 2010 for Outstanding Children's Program.[97] A second television film was ordered in June 2010, scheduled to enter production in 2011. In 2012, however, Austin said it had been canceled because of the maturing careers of the cast.[9][12][50] Berendsen was to write the screenplay.[50]
It was reported in September 2012 that an hour-long television special, 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.[115] Gomez, Austin, Stone, Canals-Barrera, DeLuise and Sulkin returned for the special which began filming in October in Los Angeles.[115] The special depicts the Russo family traveling to Tuscany, Italy, to meet with relatives, before Alex accidentally casts a spell which creates a good and evil version of herself.[115] Cheung, Montanio and Berendsen wrote the screenplay, and Victor Gonzalez directed.[115] The special premiered on March 15, 2013, watched by 5.9 million viewers.[114]
Merchandising[edit]
Walt Disney Records released a soundtrack album for the series on August 4, 2009, including songs from, and inspired by, the series and film.[116] Disney Interactive Studios released two video games based on the series for the Nintendo DS: Wizards of Waverly Place in August 2009, and Wizards of Waverly Place: Spellbound in November 2010.[117][118]
Malaysian adaptation[edit]
A Malaysian adaptation of the series, Wizards of Warna Walk, was produced for Disney Channel in Southeast Asia in 2019.[119] The series ran for 14 episodes and was filmed at Pinewood Studios in Johor, over two months.[119] Set in Kuala Lumpur, the adaptation was designed to use local actors, music compositions, the Malaysian language and Asian values.[119] Network executives considered adapting other series such as Hannah Montana, but ultimately found that Wizards resonated the best with test audiences.[119] Wizards of Warna Walk was broadcast in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.[119]
Rewatch podcast[edit]
It was teased in December 2022 that DeLuise and Stone would begin hosting a podcast entitled Wizards of Waverly Pod.[120] The podcast premiered on February 6, 2023, through the podcast network PodCo owned by Christy Carlson Romano. Gomez was featured as a guest in an episode.[121]