Maria Canals-Barrera is back as Theresa Russo in “When You Wish Upon A Squonk,” the first season’s penultimate episode. Fans can enjoy 11 all-new episodes of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place today on Disney+.

After finding out about the prophecy, Billie avoids using magic, but when a magical creature causes mayhem in the Russo house, Billie worries it’s somehow still her fault.

“We would talk about it [a reboot]. We would fantasize about it and we were all like, gung ho for it. So it was David Henrie who reached out to me through text and let me know that stuff was happening, and oh my gosh, I was like, ‘What? It’s happening for real? Oh my gosh, I’m so excited. I can’t believe it. Oh my goodness,’ because it doesn’t always happen, obviously, with a lot of shows that people want to return,” she shared. “I was thrilled and David invited us to the producers’ run through of the pilot, and when I saw that and saw how beautifully written it was, how funny it was, how talented the new kids were — I love the idea of it moving into the future, and the newness of it was really cool. To see David and Selena as adults, an adult Justin and an adult Alex in the pilot relating to each other was so cool to see and so touching for me. So then, when I got to come back as Theresa, it was familiar and wonderful, but also challenging because it’s a new season of her life as a grandma, so she’s got to be a little bit hands off, a little bit more relaxed because I’m not the parent, I’m the grandparent. So it was fun and it’s gonna be even more fun if and when I get to do even more episodes, because it’s a great situation to play.”

I spoke with the actress about her first moments on set, this new chapter of the character’s life, the love that fans still have for Wizards of Waverly Place, who she’d like to have scenes with during her next appearance, and much more.

Watch my interview below: