Former Wizards of Waverly Place stars Dan Benson and David Henrie got themselves in an unlikely online feud when Benson called him out upon discovering Henrie had blocked him on social media. Dan Benson took to a public plea because he was all distraught about the fact. Known popularly for his quirky character Zeke Beakerman from the Disney Channel sitcom, he shared a humorous but heart-of-gold reaction by posting a screenshot that seemed to indicate Henrie’s block on X, formerly Twitter. She captioned it, “We pretend to be best friends for years. How could you do this to me??
Benson’s post came with a playful yet emotional tone to signal the real-life end of their on-screen friendship. It’s seemingly a conflict rooted in career changes and different life paths.
The Wizards of Waverly Place star, among other Disney Channel shows, shocked his fandom when he made the leap from family television to OnlyFans and open discussions about his career move. According to Benson, the career turn was born of the urge to take control in his life amidst mental health struggles and a stalling acting career. While liberating, this new career choice seems to be what Benson admits might bar any chance of returning to the rebooted Disney series, Wizards Beyond Waverly Place, bringing back fan-favorite characters. Tension between Henrie and Benson went public after a now-viral BuzzFeed interview clip asked Henrie and the new reboot cast which former co-stars they’d like to see reprise their roles.
When Henrie and his fellow co-stars were on set, and Benson’s character, Zeke, was thrown in, they burst out laughing with Henrie saying, “I’m sure that’s just how he wanted to be portrayed.” Subtly, perhaps, Henrie was trying to make an inference of a strained relationship. Feeling Henrie’s longtime co-star reaction to his OnlyFans character work judged him, Benson took to Twitter with, “David Henrie can suck my d—.”.
I’ll pay him more than they paid me for Wizards, I promise you that.” This tweet was bold, and Henrie decided to block Benson from his socials afterward-a fact Benson received with a mix of humor and disappointment. He took to TikTok to post a reaction video with a caption that joked their years of “pretending” to be best friends captured her mixed emotions following the end of their connection. His tone-light-hearted, yet reflective-ended up resonating with fans of the series who still fondly remember Zeke and Justin’s friendship on the show. Despite all the fallout, it sounds like Benson is still pretty upbeat about the reboot of and what it is worth to nostalgia, even if he will never step foot on set again. In an interview with TMZ, he said his decision to enter the adult entertainment industry made a return to Wizards pretty impossible. “I think that it’s super exciting that the fans get to kind of relive their childhood again,” he said. The other side of me is so sad, knowing for real that definitely I won’t be part of it.”.
That’s all on me.” Either pride in his current work or perhaps more apt, a sense that his choices have made a return to Disney “unfeasible.” Discussing how both he and Henrie’s careers have been building, Benson brought up the obviously huge contrast. Transitioning into adult entertainment has brought personal empowerment and a new sense of independence in Benson. As for Henrie, keeping to a more traditional route, ops kept him close to his Disney roots, as it were.
