Selena Gomez' Disney Brother Approves of Benny Blanco

Disney's "The Wizards of Waverly Place" - Season Three — (Image credit: Getty Images)

Selena Gomez' on-screen brother will always "have her back," by his own admission.

David Henrie, who starred as Justin Russo on the Disney Channel show where Gomez got her start, Wizards of Waverly Place, has opened up about meeting the Rare Beauty founder's boyfriend Benny Blanco for the first time—and it's safe to say he approves.

"He's such a nice guy. He’s super funny. I was cracking up the whole time," Henrie told E! News about the first time he met Blanco, on a double date with Gomez and Henrie's wife Maria Cahill. The actor spoke to the outlet while on set for the reboot Wizards Beyond Waverly Place, which he's producing—as is Gomez.

"We had a great dinner. We had some Italian food," Henrie continued. "He can order good food. He can order very good food."

This tidbit is unsurprising, given Blanco is a cookbook author, and has also bragged about his fried pickles being so tasty that they get him "laid" (not a euphemism).

@itsbennyblanco
fry pickles and get laid
♬ Little Things - Adrian Berenguer

"I trust Selena and I want her to be very happy," Henrie continued, further commenting on the romance. "She knows I have her back."

He shared that he and his on-screen sister shared that "sibling dynamic" behind the scenes of the show as well, and that their friendship has gone from strength to strength since the series ended, too.

"[We’re] always encouraging. Always there for one another," he said. "Her and I, we go back so far, 20 years now almost. She knows I'm gonna shoot her straight and I know she’s gonna shoot me straight. So there’s no fluff around it. We’re just there for each other. We shoot each other straight and I think that’s why our bond has always been there and will continue to be."

Gomez and Blanco, a major music producer, have been dating since roughly December 2023, with the lovebirds regularly showing off their sweet love on social media and gushing about each other in interviews. *happy sigh*

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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.