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Selena Gomez on life post-Disney: 'It's hard not to be a cliché'

The singer and actress played Alex Russo on four seasons of the Disney Channel series "Wizards of Waverly Place."

By Annie Martin
Selena Gomez attends the American Music Awards on November 20, 2016. The singer and actress appears on the April cover of Vogue. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
1 of 3 | Selena Gomez attends the American Music Awards on November 20, 2016. The singer and actress appears on the April cover of Vogue. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo

March 16 (UPI) -- Selena Gomez says it's "hard not to be a cliché" as a former Disney star.

The 24-year-old singer and actress opened up in the April issue of Vogue about her ups and downs since starring on the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place.

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"I worked with Disney for four years," Gomez told the magazine. "It's a very controlled machine. They know what they represent, and there was, 100 percent, a way to go about things."

"For a guy there's a way to rebel that can work for you," she said. "But for a woman, that can backfire. It's hard not to be a cliché, the child star gone wrong. I did respect my fans and what I had, but I was also figuring out what I was passionate about and how far I was willing to go."

Gomez played Alex Russo on Wizards of Waverly Place, which aired from 2007 to 2012. She has since worked on more adult projects, including the movie Spring Breakers and her album Revival, and spent 90 days in a psychiatric facility in 2016.

"My self-esteem was shot. I was depressed, anxious. I started to have panic attacks right before getting onstage, or right after leaving the stage. Basically I felt I was wasn't good enough, wasn't capable," the star explained.

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"People so badly wanted me to be authentic, and when that happened, finally, it was a huge release," she previously said. "I'm not different from what I put out there. I've been very vulnerable with my fans, and sometimes I say things I shouldn't. But I have to be honest with them."

Gomez returned to the spotlight at the American Music Awards in November, where she admitted she "was absolutely broken inside" before she sought help at the facility. She will executive produce the new Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, but is keeping the rest of her schedule open.

"For a change, it feels like I don't have to be holding my breath and waiting for somebody to judge a piece of work that I'm doing. I'm not eager to chase a moment. I don't think there's a moment for me to chase," the actress said.

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