Selena Gomez Says She Is Done Playing Alex Russo After Wizards Finale

Selena Gomez is officially saying goodbye to Alex Russo. The four-part finale of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place dropped on Disney+ on August 4, and Gomez made clear in an Entertainment Tonight special released the same day that this chapter is fully closed.

"This is it. This is the end," Gomez said, reflecting on nearly two decades with the character she first played on the original Disney Channel series in 2007. "It's really surreal to say that I'm done playing this character."

The original Wizards of Waverly Place ran four seasons before wrapping in 2012. Gomez and costar David Henrie eventually brought it back as a spinoff, with Gomez also stepping behind the camera to make her directorial debut on the third and final installment of the new series.

What the Wizards Beyond Waverly Place Finale Brings to a Close

The finale also marks the return of Jennifer Stone as Harper Finkle, one of the most beloved characters from the original run, who had been absent for the spinoff's first two seasons. Stone described filming the conclusion with Gomez as "saying goodbye to, in a weird way, your teenage self."

Gomez used the moment to speak to what she hopes the show leaves behind. "My hope is that people fall in love with family shows again," she said, "and that they hold this to a standard of appreciating what it means to just have a show that the whole family can get together, watch, hopefully laugh."

Beyond the screen, Gomez's profile has only grown since those early Disney days. She has placed 46 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, including the No. 1 hit "Lose You to Love Me" in 2019. At the end of July she dropped a new single, "Te Olvido (La La)," a collaboration with her husband Benny Blanco and Becky G, keeping her very much active on the music side.

Why This Moment Matters Beyond Nostalgia

This is not just a farewell to a childhood favorite. It is a case study in how a creator can own and extend their legacy on their own terms. Gomez did not just return to reprise a role. She directed, she produced alongside Henrie, and she shaped how the story ends. That kind of creative control over an IP you built from the ground up is worth paying attention to.

For independent artists and creators watching from the outside, the move is a reminder that your earliest work does not have to define you, but it also does not have to be something you run from. Gomez came back to Alex Russo on her schedule, with a new single already out and a beauty brand she built from scratch. The whole package speaks for itself.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place is now streaming in full on Disney+. Watch where Gomez goes next, because the post-Alex era is already in motion.