David DeLuise Hopes to Become ‘Pretend Grandfather’ to Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco’s Future Children



NEED TO KNOW

  • Wizards of Waverly Place star David DeLuise is sharing a heartfelt message to his “pretend daughter” Selena Gomez after her wedding to Benny Blanco
  • “When I started working with Selena she was just 14 years old. Now she’s a wife, beginning her new journey with a wonderful man by her side,” DeLuise wrote
  • DeLuise and Gomez starred as father Jerry Russo and daughter Alex Russo in Wizards of Waverly Place

Wizards of Waverly Place star David DeLuise is sharing a heartfelt message to his “pretend daughter” Selena Gomez after her wedding to Benny Blanco.

In a post shared to Instagram, DeLuise, 53, shared tons of photos from Gomez, his former Disney Channel co-star, and Blanco’s nuptials and wrote candidly about the actress.

“I’ve been off social media for two months, but I had to return to congratulate @selenagomez and @itsbennyblanco on their wedding. It was a perfect day, full of love and joy,” the actor wrote.

“My wife @jules_rules_berlin and I were honored to attend, and we had so much fun dancing the night away at my ‘pretend daughter’s’ wedding. I’m so happy to now have a ‘pretend son-in-law,'” he joked, referring to his and Gomez’s roles as father Jerry Russo and daughter Alex Russo in Wizards of Waverly Place.

“When I started working with Selena she was just 14 years old. Now she’s a wife, beginning her new journey with a wonderful man by her side,” DeLuise continued. “And hopefully one day I will be a pretend grandfather.”

DeLuise also gave a shoutout to some other stars, including Taylor Swift and his other former co-stars Jennifer Stone and Maria Canals-Barrera, who played Alex’s best friend Harper Finkle and Theresa Russo, the matriarch of the wizard family.

“It was wonderful dancing with @jenniferstone and @maria_cb and her family!” he wrote, alongside photos of his family.

“We also spent time with @taylorswift. When we were filming wizards I first met Taylor,” the actor shared. “We all went bowling and she was sweet, genuine and down-to-earth, and she is exactly the same now. unchanged by all her success. Go Chiefs!”

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Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco.

Petra Collins


Two days after Gomez, 33, and Blanco, 37, tied the knot in California on Sept. 27, DeLuise’s wife Julia shared photos with her husband from the wedding weekend on Instagram, writing, “Love is the word. 🫰🏼.” She then posted several videos on her Instagram Stories detailing the “celebration of love” and her “surreal” experiences at the nuptials, the “highlight” of which was talking to Swift, 35, who PEOPLE previously confirmed gave a speech at the wedding reception.

“The speeches, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift gave speeches, it was wonderful. Mainly Taylor,” Julia said.

Julia explained that details of Gomez and Blanco’s nuptials were kept “pretty secret for a long time” after she and David received their invitation. Eventually, they were told the exact date and given two hotel options to choose from.

“We knew we would be picked up at a certain time at one of those hotels, then go straight to the wedding,” she said, noting that Stone greeted them during check-in at The Ritz-Carlton.

David and Julia DeLuise at Selena Gomez’s wedding.

Julia DeLuise/Instagram


“As soon as Selena walked in, and she was walked down the aisle by her grandpa, I started crying,” Julia said.

Other celebrity friends in attendance included Gomez’s Only Murders in the Building costars Steve Martin and Martin Short, who delivered a joint speech at the rehearsal dinner. Other former Only Murders in the Building stars at the wedding were Paul RuddAshley Park and Cara Delevingne.

Édgar Ramírez and Zoe Saldaña, who both starred in Emilia Pérez, were also at the nuptials alongside Swift, Ed SheeranParis HiltonSZACamila CabelloCara DelevingneEric AndréFinneas and Nina Dobrev.

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Grammy winner Mark Ronson DJed at the reception, which also featured speeches from Swift, Sheeran, Gomez’s mom Mandy Teefey and stepdad Brian, as well as Blanco’s parents, Andrew and Sandra Levin.

A source close to Gomez and Blanco told PEOPLE that the couple curated the perfect night for themselves and their guests to celebrate their marriage.

“There was so much love in the room,” the source said of the wedding. “… The ceremony moved guests to tears. They wrote their own vows, which were both funny and sentimental.”



Credit to Nypost AND Peoples

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