‘Wizards Beyond Waverly Place’ Costume Supervisor on Dressing Selena Gomez and Keeping Her ‘Within the Character’
After 12 long years, the “Wizards of Waverly Place” are back.
“Wizards Beyond Waverly Place” follows a grown-up Justin (David Henrie) and his mortal family (Mimi Gianopulos, Max Matenko and Alkaio Thiele) living on Staten Island. Alex (Selena Gomez) brings Justin a young wizard who is in need of his training and guidance, Billie (Janice LeAnn Brown). Justin, of course, takes on the challenge and welcomes Billie into the Russo family.
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Resurrecting a beloved Disney series that had mesmerized so many viewers was not easy. However, the secret lay in bringing back some original members to help recreate the show and infuse it with magic.
In front of the camera, Henrie stars and Gomez makes guest appearances, and both serve as executive producers. Behind the camera, many of the artisans also return. Among those were director Jody Hahn, first AD Guy Distad, special effects artist Justin Krauss, costume supervisor Gelareh Medge and camera coordinator Bryan W. McKenzie.
On the costume front, Medge worked closely with the show’s costume designer Julie Rhine. They looked at where the characters would be now, building on what had been established in the original series.
Since “Waverly Place” ended, Gomez’s star power has risen significantly as an actor, musican and entrepreneur. Medge admits, “When we did the first fitting with Selena, you would think we would have to go buy all these expensive clothes and runway stuff. When it came to dressing her for the show, the one thing that was very important for her, that she communicated was that she did not want to overdress. She was amazing about staying within the character of who she was.”
Elsewhere, Medge and Rhine sought to maintain Justin’s preppy look, adding an updated twist to the 1960s-style shirts he wore.
In dressing the new additions, Roman and Milo, creating individual styles was important. Milo’s carefree ways led to a sportier look, and Roman “is a little bit more studious so we put him in polo shirts and Oxford dress shirts.”
With Billie, played by Janice LeAnn Brown, Medge admits her character’s look was one of the hardest to find and fine-tune. An evil being is after Billie, and she holds the fate of the world in her hand. Medge and Rhine put Brown through several fitting sessions to get the look right. “You don’t want her to be too dark as a wizard because she’s still youthful and carefree, but you can’t have her too colorful.” Medge explains. “We had to find the balance between wizard and mortal world and make her relatable as a teen.”
Hahn joined the show during its second season as an associate director and worked her way up. She says being back on the set with the new cast members along with the original cast “was like coming back to family.”
She fondly recalls how back then everyone was learning together, particularly when it came to visual effects. “It was all new to us,” she says. From Alex and her mom switching bodies to Alex riding through space to a flying carpet, visual effects were new to Hahn. “It was exciting to learn how to do it, and have it be a part of our toolbox.” Coming back, Hahn says, this time around, things were easier. “I’d say, ‘I know how we did that, or I know how to do that.’ You lock up the shot, get the plate and it’s just in us now.”
The original series incorporated a lot of special effects, visual effects and stunts, which according to Krauss was not common for a multi-camera series geared towards children. “We were doing it in front of audiences, and it was difficult because we were figuring it all out, and it brought everyone together as a team,” says Krauss. “I think it provided a unique show for people to watch because that kind of thing wasn’t normally done.”
Fast forward to the present day, practical effects are the norm. Krauss and his team still work with visual effects, and as advanced as the technology has become, his approach remains the same. “They might be creating something that’s not really there, but it needs to interact with the real world and the actors. So, we’re providing that interaction to make those VFX seem much more like they live in the real world.”
The “Wizards Beyond Waverly Place” airs on the Disney Channel every Tuesday and streams on Disney+ and Disney on Demand on Wednesdays.
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