David Henrie Teases Potential ‘Wizards Beyond Waverly Place’ Movie in Italy

‘Wizards Beyond Waverly Place‘ has just concluded its 34-episode journey, but David Henrie is not ready to bid farewell to the Russo family. The Disney+ sequel series, which showcased Henrie’s Justin Russo navigating fatherhood alongside a new generation of wizards, wrapped up its narrative with a four-part finale that addressed several significant plot points left unresolved since the show’s second season.

In that finale, the Russos managed to rescue Selena Gomez’s Alex Russo from a magical portal, while Billie, portrayed by Janice LeAnn Brown, finally located her long-lost father within Wizcatraz. For a show centered on family, resolving these relationships was crucial for Henrie, who also took on the roles of executive producer, director, and writer throughout the series.

In a recent interview, Henrie shared his vision for the next chapter of the story, should Disney decide to continue the franchise. Speaking with Forbes, he suggested a storyline that unfolds sometime after the events viewers have just witnessed, hinting that the Russos could venture into the magical ruins of Italy, as reported by Forbes.

This Italian backdrop is not a random choice for the franchise. It directly echoes 2013’s “The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex,” the Disney Channel original movie that transported Gomez’s character and her family to Tuscany, indicating that any potential follow-up film could act as a spiritual successor to that earlier segment of the Russos’ saga.

Henrie has consistently expressed his desire to continue the story on the big screen rather than through another television season. In a separate conversation with TheWrap, he mentioned that he intentionally included a line in the finale’s closing scene regarding the family wizard competition, believing it could pave the way for a movie sequel reminiscent of 2009’s original “Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie.”

That earlier film featured Henrie’s Justin, Gomez’s Alex, and Jake T. Austin’s Max competing against each other to determine the family’s official wizard. Henrie has proposed that a new movie could revisit this competition format, focusing on the next generation of Russos, with Italy as a potential setting for that magical showdown.

In addition to the wizard competition concept, Henrie has highlighted specific unresolved plot threads that a feature film could finally address. In discussions with TV Insider, he explained the decision to kill off Mason, Alex’s former love interest played by Gregg Sulkin, noting that as a werewolf character who had lived a long life, it was simply his time to pass on, allowing Alex to move forward and start a new family.

Henrie informed TVLine that discussions about a possible movie have already begun to take shape behind the scenes, stating that in his view, a film should be made to properly conclude the Russos’ story with one last thrilling chapter. While nothing has been officially confirmed by Disney, Henrie’s repeated remarks across various platforms indicate a genuine momentum building behind the idea.

With the franchise now spanning nearly two decades since Henrie first portrayed Justin Russo in 2007, a potential movie set in Italy would provide longtime fans one last opportunity to see the Russo family’s magical world expand beyond Waverly Place.

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