ENTERTAINMENTDavid Henrie Says Disney Show Barely Paid Residuals But 'How I Met Your Mother' Kept Him Financially Secure Over the Years With 'Crazy' Checks
David Henrie said his 'Wizards of Waverly Place' residuals pale in comparison to the payments he receives from 'How I Met Your Mother.'
Oct. 27 2026, Published 12:01 p.m. ET
David Henrie revealed his residuals from Wizards of Waverly Place have been paltry compared to what he gets from his recurring role on How I Met Your Mother.
"Maybe a little bit here and there. But nothing really," Henrie said of his Disney checks during an episode of the "Good Guys" podcast with hosts Josh Peck and Ben Soffer.
David Henrie Was Surprised by His Disney Residuals
Despite 'Wizards of Waverly Place's' popularity, its residuals have been minimal, a situation Josh Peck said he also experienced with 'Drake & Josh.'
Henrie played Justin Russo on Wizards of Waverly Place from 2007 to 2012, starring alongside Selena Gomez.
Despite the show's popularity, its reruns have not brought the Kids' Choice Award nominee the kind of ongoing payments he might have expected.
"I think it was after, at that time, hadn't like combined," Henrie explained, referring to Disney's operations and the company's residual payment arrangements during that period.
Peck, who starred in Nickelodeon's Drake & Josh, said he had a similar experience with children's television.
"Nothing," Peck replied when asked whether his Nickelodeon work had generated meaningful residuals.
'How I Met Your Mother' Was a Different Story
David Henrie praised 'How I Met Your Mother' for treating its cast well, revealing that editing his 30 episodes into 90 segments boosted his residual payments.
Henrie's experience with the CBS sitcom was a lot better. He played Luke Mosby, one of the children of Ted Mosby, appearing in scenes that helped frame the show's central story.
"The network stuff that I did, like How I Met Your Mother, was a completely different thing," explained the 37-year-old. "Network TV took really good care of their people."
He went on to reveal that his 30 episodes were edited into three times as many segments, significantly increasing the residual payments tied to his appearances.
"It's like doing 90 guest stars on a show at network rates back in the day," said the actor. "It was crazy."
The sitcom ran from 2005 to 2014 and starred Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris and Alyson Hannigan.
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One Check Made Him Think There Was a Mistake
David Henrie recalled mistaking a large 'How I Met Your Mother' residual check for an error before learning the payment was correct.
The difference became especially clear when Henrie received an unexpectedly large check in the mail.
"I remember one time I literally, I thought it was a joke. I went and got a residual check out of the mail. And I saw it and I thought it was a joke," the That's So Raven recurring star recalled.
The actor initially suspected an error had inflated the amount, so he contacted his business manager to check.
"And I was like, 'Hey, they made a mistake. Like, there's no way. I think they added a zero on accident,'" Henrie remembered saying.
His business manager assured him the payment was correct.
"They're like, 'Nope. That's it,'" he recalled.
The money has continued to arrive years after the sitcom ended, making the role an enduring source of residual income.
David Henrie Has Taken on Roles Beyond Sitcoms
Beyond sitcoms, David Henrie has built a film career, directed two movies and earned an Emmy nomination as an executive producer.
Beyond his sitcom work, the seasoned performer has appeared in films such as Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2, Little Boy and Walt Before Mickey. He also portrayed young Ronald Reagan in the 2024 biographical film Reagan, starring Dennis Quaid as the former U.S. president.
Henrie has also moved behind the camera, directing This Is the Year (2020) and Monster Summer (2024). He served as an executive producer on Netflix's animated series A Tale Dark & Grimm, which received an Emmy nomination.
