Like so many big stars these days, from Zendaya to Miley Cyrus, it all started on Disney Channel for Selena Gomez when she became the lead of the sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place at the age of 15. While Gomez certainly represented Latina-American girlhood as the sarcastic Alex Russo at that time, showrunner Peter Murrieta has now shared that there were also plans for Gomez’s character to become Disney’s first bisexual lead.
The Disney Channel made history just a few years ago by having The Owl House’s Luz Noceda (who is a witch, funnily enough) earn that distinction. However, as Peter Murrieta told Wizards of Waverly Pod during this week’s episode with podcast hosts and Disney stars Jennifer Stone and David DeLuise, it could have happened much sooner.
When Murrieta was asked about a storyline in Wizards of Waverly Place he wished the show could have explored further, the showrunner said the answer was “easy” before saying these words:
I wished we could have played more with what was quite obvious to a lot of us was the relationship between Stevie and Alex. But we weren’t able to in that time…it was pretty clear to all of us what that relationship was. And, that would’ve been fun… [Disney Channel] did it! They have had [LGBTQ characters]. At the time it wasn’t a thing. But, we got as close as we could. I mean it was pretty close.
Murrieta is referring to the character of Stevie Nichols, a fellow wizard like Alex who first appeared in Episode 11 of Wizards of Waverly Place Season 3, before making appearances in three more episodes of the Disney Channel series. The pair became good friends in the storyline, but according to Murrieta, they had hoped for the relationship to blossom into a romance, therefore making Alex Russo bisexual.
The showrunner shared that perhaps it wouldn’t have been accepted if Disney Channel made the move while the show was on the air between 2007 and 2012. Gomez’s Wizards love interest that never came to be was none-other-than Hayley Kiyoko, who has since become “Lesbian Jesus" in her music career, with her LGBTQ+ inclusive pop music and upcoming young adult novel, Girls Like Girls. Kiyoko also previously played Velma in the 2009 TV movie, Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins, prior to the character getting her first canonically queer moment back in October.
Following Murrieta’s comments, Kiyoko took to Instagram to show her support for the pairing. Check it:
The Wizards of Waverly Pod recently reunited Selena Gomez with Stone and DeLuise, who played her best friend and father, respectively, where the Only Murders in the Building actress got candid about getting out of touch with her cast but “never” loving anybody as much. During their conversation, they also brought hope for a Wizards of Waverly Place reunion. While we wish for that to come to life, you can rewatch the whole Disney Channel series with a Disney+ subscription.
