Austin Lending His Voice to 3D Animated Film “Khumba”

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Jake T. Austin is about to get animated again…

The 18-year-old Latino actor of Puerto Rican, Argentine and Spanish descent, who served as the voice of Diego on the animated educational series Dora the Explorer and it’s spin-off Go, Diego, Go!, has joined the cast of Khumba.

The South Africa-based 3D animated feature centers on a plucky half-striped zebra blamed for a drought by his superstitious herd who meets a wacky group of characters as he goes on a journey to earn his full stripes.

In addition to Austin, who will be starring opposite Cierra Ramirez in ABC Family’s new drama series The Fosters this summer, the voice cast includes Laurence Fishburne, Liam Neeson, AnnaSophia Robb, Loretta Devine and Richard E. Grant.

Raffaella Delle Donne and Anthony Silverston wrote the story in consultation with Lion King co-writer Jonathan Roberts.

Silverston directed the film, which is in post-production. Khumba should be released in the U.S. later this year.

Santos Lands Recurring Role on ABC Family’s “The Fosters”

Posted on April 5, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Bianca Santos is joining the (ABC) Family…

The Latina newcomer has joined the cast of ABC Family‘s The Fosters as a recurring player.

From executive producer Jennifer Lopez, the family drama follows two moms and their multi-ethnic family.

The Fosters is a big break for Santos, who will recur in the key role of Lexi, the best friend to fraternal twin Mariana Foster (Cierra Ramirez).

Production began on Friday in Burbank, with pilot director Tim Busfield helming.

Teri Polo, Sherri Saum, Jake T. Austin, Hayden Byerly, David Lambert, Maia Mitchell and Danny Nucci star in The Fosters.

Benny Medina, Joanna Johnson, Blaine Goldsmith Thomas, Elaine Goldsmith Thomas and Greg Gugliotta serve as executive producers along with Lopez on the Nuyorican Productions/Prodco series.

The Fosters will debut at 9:00 pm on June 3 on ABC Family.

Austin & Ramirez’s “The Fosters” to Premiere in June

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Jake T. Austin and Cierra Ramirez will be getting their ABC Family close-up this June…

The network has scheduled the premiere date for its new family drama The Fosters, which stars the 18-year-old Puerto Rican, Argentine, and Spanish-American actor and the 17-year-old Latina actress, for early June.

Executive-produced by Jennifer Lopez, the one-hour drama revolves around a multi-ethnic family mix of foster and biological kids being raised by two moms Stef (Teri Polo) and Lena (Sherri Saum).

Austin will portray Jesus Foster, while Ramirez will play his sister Mariana.

The Fosters will premiere on Monday, June 3rd at 9:00 pm ET.

The Disney Channel Releases “The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex” Trailer

Posted on March 9, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

In less than a week, Selena Gomez will be back on the Disney Channel…

Leading up to the premiere of the network’s special The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex, the network has released a trailer for the project, which stars the 20-year-old half-Mexican American actress and her fellow Wizards of Waverly Place co-stars.

The trailer offers a sneak peek to Alex Russo’s battle against the “evil” version of herself and includes commentaries from the who talk about the plot and their excitement about returning to the Wizards set .

In the hour-long special, the Russo family heads to Italy to visit relatives, but Alex accidentally invokes a spell that splits her into two people: An “Evil Alex” and a “Good Alex.” When “Evil Alex” joins forces with a young wizard to take over the world, “Good Alex” must battle her nasty twin in a battle that culminates atop the Tower of Pisa.

In addition to Gomez, the special includes the return of Jake T. Austin, Jennifer Stone, Maria Canals-Barrera and David DeLuise.

The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex will premiere on Friday, March 15 at 8:oo pm ET.

Pena Jr. Nominated for Two Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards

Posted on February 14, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

It appears that Nickelodeon viewers have a big time crush on Carlos Pena Jr.…

The 23-year-old singer/actor/dancer of Spanish, Venezuelan and Dominican descent is a two-time nominee for Nickelodeon’s 26th Annual Kids’ Choice Awards, making him the most nominated Hispanic celebrity this year.

Pena Jr., one of the stars of Nickelodeon’s Big Time Rush and a member of the band of the same name, has been nominated in the Favorite TV Actor category. He’s up against Wizards of Waverly Place’s Jake T. Austin, Marvin Marvin’s Lucas Cruikshank and Austin & Ally’s Ross Lynch.

Pena Jr. and his band mates, who released the summer anthem “Windows Down” last June, are nominated for Favorite Music Group. Big Time Rush will face-off against Bon Jovi, Maroon 5 and One Direction.

Other nominees include Selena Gomez, Bruno Mars and Victoria Justice.

The 2013 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards, hosted by Josh Duhamel, will be broadcast live on Saturday, March 23 from USC’s Galen Center from 8:00 – 9:30 pm ET.

Beginning this Valentine’s Day, kids will be able to cast their votes in all 22 categories, across all of Nickelodeon’s digital outlets: Nick.com, all desktop and mobile devices, and Nickelodeon’s Facebook page and Twitter feed.

Here’s a look at all the categories with a Latino/a nominee:

TELEVISION

Favorite TV Actor
Jake T. Austin (Wizards of Waverly Place)
Lucas Cruikshank (Marvin Marvin)
Ross Lynch (Austin & Ally)
Carlos Pena (Big Time Rush)

Favorite TV Actress
Miranda Cosgrove (iCarly)
Selena Gomez (Wizards of Waverly Place)
Victoria Justice (Victorious)
Bridgit Mendler (Good Luck Charlie)

Favorite TV Show

Good Luck Charlie
iCarly
Victorious
Wizards of Waverly Place

MUSIC

Favorite Music Group
Big Time Rush
Bon Jovi
Maroon 5
One Direction

Favorite Male Singer
Justin Bieber
Bruno Mars
Blake Shelton
Usher

Lopez’s “The Fosters” Gets Series Order at ABC Family

Posted on February 7, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Jennifer Lopez is bringing the drama to ABC Family…

The network has greenlighted the 43-year-old Puerto Rican multi-hyphenate’s The Fosters to series.

Executive produced by la Lopez, the scripted drama is a one-hour drama that revolves around a multi-ethnic family mix of foster and biological kids being raised by two moms Stef (Teri Polo) and Lena (Sherri Saum). Wizards of Waverly Place‘s Jake T. Austin, Hayden Byerly, David Lambert, Maia Mitchell, Danny Nucci and Girl in Progress star Cierra Ramirez co-star. It was co-created by Bradley Bredeweg and Peter Paige.

The Fosters will begin production this spring for a summer launch. The series order for The Fosters is in line with the network’s typical pickups, usually in the range of eight to 12 episodes.

The Fosters joins ABC Family’s growing scripted slate of popular original programming that includes Pretty Little Liars, Switched at Birth, Baby Daddy and the outgoing The Secret Life of the American Teenager.

Gomez’s “The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex” Trailer Released

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a battle of good vs. evil when Selena Gomez returns to Waverly Place…

The Disney Channel has released the official trailer for the Wizards of Waverly Place movie special featuring the 20-year-old half-Mexican American actress/singer battling herself.

Gomez returns as Alex Russo in the highly anticipated television event, “The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex” — a movie based on the Disney Channel’s popular series — and she’s facing her “biggest battle yet,” the trailer teases: Herself.

The Alex vs. Alex trailer informs fans that since winning the family wizard competition, Alex has struggled to use magic for good, so she decides to use magic to remove “just the parts that nobody likes” from herself.

Despite her father’s warning that “magic is not for getting what you want or using it for selfish reasons,” Alex accidentally conjures up two versions of herself: Good Alex and Evil Alex.

Alex vs. Alex sees Alex’s younger brother Max (Jake T. Austin), mom Theresa (Maria Canals-Barrera), dad Jerry (David DeLuise), best friend Harper (Jennifer Stone) and boyfriend-cum-werewolf Mason (Gregg Sulkin) travel to Tuscany to meet the Russo’s long-lost relatives. Though David Henrie will not be back as Alex’s older brother Justin for Alex vs. Alex, Beau Mirchoff of MTV’s Awkward fame joins the cast as an evil sorcerer.

The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex will premier on the Disney Channel on Friday, March 15 at 8 p.m. EST.

Gomez’s “Wizards of Waverly Place” Special to Air in March

Posted on January 25, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

If you’ve been missing Selena Gomez’s Wizards of Waverly Place, you’re in luck…

The 20-year-old Mexican-American actress and her Disney Channel co-stars will be returning with a one-hour special more than a year after hanging up their wands.

Dubbed The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex, the Gomez-executive-produced special will air on Friday, March 15 at 8:00 pm ET.

In the special, directed by Victor Gonzalez, the Russo family and their friends travel to Tuscany, Italy, to meet relatives. But while trying to prove that she’s serious about her craft as a wizard, Alex (Gomez) accidentally conjures up a spell that splits her personality into two — a Good Alex and an Evil Alex. The dueling Alexes eventually battle over the fate of her family and mankind atop the Tower of Pisa.

The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex also stars Jake T. Austin, Jennifer Stone, Maria Canals-Barrera, David DeLuise, Gregg Sulkin and Beau Mirchoff.

The original Wizards of Waverly Place ran for more than 100 episodes and earned multiple Emmy Awards. It was also the No. 1 series on TV among kids 2-11, kids 6-11 and tweens 9-14 during its run.

The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex will first debut Friday, March 8 on Disney Channel On Demand. The special will be available for iTunes download starting Tuesday, March 19.

Austin Cast in J.Lo’s “The Fosters” Pilot for ABC Family

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

He may no longer be a Russo on the Disney Channel’s Wizards of Waverly Place… But Jake T. Austin may soon be forming part of a new TV family.

The 17-year-old Puerto Rican, Argentine and Spanish actor has joined the cast of ABC Family‘s drama pilot The Fosters, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The hour-long drama, executive produced by Jennifer Lopez, centers on Stef (The West Wing‘s Teri Polo) and Lena Foster (Rescue Me‘s Sherri Saum), a mixed-race lesbian couple who are parents to a biological son Brandon (David Lambert) as well as several adopted children. When Lena decides to take in Callie (Maia Mitchell), a troubled teen with an abusive past, the girl’s disruptive ways threaten to turn the Fosters’ lives upside down.

Austin, who recently guest-starred on Law & Order: SVU and Drop Dead Diva, will portray Jesus Foster, Mariana’s bilingual fraternal twin who may not be as book smart as his sister but is more sensible and pragmatic than she is. He’s described as a charming, hyperkinetic kid who’s on Ritalin.

The casting news comes shortly after Austin wrapped his four-season stint on Wizards of Waverly Place, where he played Selena Gomez’s kid brother Max Russo, one of three wizards, for more than 100 episodes of the series. He’ll reprise the role in the network’s upcoming one-hour special.

The pilot is currently in pre-production for a November shoot in Los Angeles.

Gomez Returning to Disney for New “Wizards of Waverly Place” Movie

Posted on September 28, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

She may be starring in more grown-up projects like Spring Breakers… But that doesn’t mean Selena Gomez is forgetting her Disney Channel roots.

The 20-year-old half-Mexican American actress/singer has signed on to executive-produce and star in a one-hour special based on Wizards of Waverly Place, which ended its run on the Disney Channel early this year.

Gomez will join Jake T. Austin, Jennifer Stone, Maria Canals-Barrera, David DeLuise and Gregg Sulkin, who will reprise their original roles.

The storyline for the special takes the Russo family and friends to Tuscany, Italy, to meet their long lost relatives. But when Alex (Gomez) tries to prove that she’s more than a seemingly carefree young wizard, she inadvertently conjures up a spell that creates a Good Alex and an Evil Alex. When Evil Alex gets roped into a foreboding plan to take over the world, Good Alex must find a way to save her family and humankind, which leads to a monumental battle between the two versions of herself – all atop the Tower of Pisa.

The made-for-television special was written by Vince Cheung and Ben Montanio (Wizards Of Waverly Place) and Dan Berendsen (Baby Daddy).

Victor Gonzalez (Wizards Of Waverly Place) will direct. Wizards Of Waverly Place was created by Todd J. Greenwald (Hannah Montana) and is produced by It’s a Laugh Productions for Disney Channel.

The Wizards Of Waverly Place won its third Best Children’s Program Emmy at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards earlier this month. It has won twice for the series (2009, 2012) and once for the series’ first TV movie offshoot in 2010. It’s the only scripted series to win the award in the past two decades, since Disney Channel’s Avonlea did it in 1993.

The new Wizards of Waverly Place special is scheduled to premiere in early 2013.

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