Austin Butler and Selena Gomez go way back. And by “way back,” the pair’s friendship dates all the way back to Gomez’s days starring as Alex Russo on Disney Channel’s Wizards of Waverly Place, where Butler had a guest starring role as her onscreen boyfriend.
The Elvis actor revealed in a Wednesday (Feb. 15) interview with Vanity Fair that Gomez reminded him of their fateful encounter over a decade ago by sending him a sweet throwback image of the two of them on set for the show.
“When I was filming Elvis, Selena found this photograph of the two of us when I did a guest-star thing on her show Wizards of Waverly Place. And she sends it to me, just going, ‘Wow, remember this?’ It feels like another life,” he shared. “When you’re a child actor, you see so many people come in from Texas or something, and at a certain point they may quit or go back. We’re just so fortunate to have careers in this industry for this amount of time.”
Butler also elaborated on his relationship with the star in an interview with Extra. “I’ve known her for so many years so it’s nice to share a space with somebody for a long period of time. I’m just so proud of her,” he said in a red carpet moment at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. “Her documentary moved me as well. Getting to see that, I thought it was so brave. I’m really honored to be in her company.”