Selena Gomez Says Disney Bans This 3-Word Phrase

Selena Gomez is no longer under the watchful eye of The Disney Channel, so she can say whatever she wants publicly. When she starred in Wizards of Waverly Place though, there was a specific three-word phrase she was told never to say in interviews. Gomez, 30, is still in the Disney fold, as she stars in Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building.

In a new interview with Vanity Fair, Gomez said that “of course” there were some phrases Disney told her not to say. One of them was “What the hell?” She was supposed to avoid saying that phrase whenever possible.

“I wasn’t a wild child by any means, but I was on Disney, so I had to make sure not to say ‘What the hell?’ in front of anyone,” she said. “It’s stuff that I was also putting on myself to be the best role model I could be. Now I think being the best role model is being honest, even with the ugly and complicated parts of yourself.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Gomez expanded on her previous comments that she was “haunted” by the idea that people will continue to associate her with her Disney projects. Since she released her Apple TV+ documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, Gomez said she definitely feels “free” from that fear. ” Sometimes I get triggered,” she said. “It’s not that I’m ashamed of my past, it’s just that I’ve worked so hard to find my own way. I don’t want to be who I was. I want to be who I am.”

Gomez rose to stardom as Alex Russo on Disney’s Wizards of Waverly Place, which aired from 2007 to 2012. She also released music on the Disney-owned Hollywood Records label and starred in the Disney Channel original movie Princess Protection Program. Her two most recent albums – Revival (2015) and Rare (2020) – were both released by Interscope Records. She is now working on Season 3 of Only Murders in the Building. The series is produced by Disney’s 20th Television for Hulu, which Disney still owns a majority stake in. Gomez also starred in the HBO Max cooking series Selena + Chef.

In 2021, Gomez said she was not reluctant to work with Disney again on Only Murders. “No, definitely not. I was looking for another show to do,” Gomez told reporters. “And by the way, I’m beyond proud of the work that I did with Disney as well. It kind of shaped who I am in a way.”

Gomez has connected with fans through her honesty about her health. One of the reasons she came forward about her bipolar disorder was because she was tired of censoring herself. In My Mind & Me, someone close to her asks her why she revealed her diagnosis publicly.

“Maybe it was weird and uncomfortable for other people, and obviously I was worried, but I think it finally allowed me to start being open about everything,” she told Vanity Fair. “It’s not that I was kind of sad -I actually have things that are chemically imbalanced in my brain, and I need to understand what that is, take care of it, and nurture it. I’m not ashamed of it. I don’t ever feel, even for five seconds, that I’m crazy. My thoughts tend to ruminate, but it’s up to me to be proud of who I am and to take care of myself.”