Jeff Garlin says Selena Gomez's sexualization is 'disgusting'

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 3 (UPI) —

It’s been two years since Selena Gomez stopped playing teen witch Alex Russo in the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place, but her co-star Jeff Garlin still remembers what Gomez used to look and act like back in the day.

During an interview with HuffPost Live on Wednesday Garlin said that after working with Gomez on the Disney series for three years he could attest that she was a "great kid," however, the actor isn’t fond of her new "sexualized" image.

"I saw Spring Breakers, and I’m by myself in the theater, and I couldn’t have felt dirtier," said Garlin.

The Curb Your Enthusiasm star said he "went to go see her work, and her work was great," but added he can’t see the appeal in the sexualization of such a young actress.

"I look at her and I look at Ariana Grande, both beautiful girls. Really beautiful girls. But they have baby fat. They look like kids," he said. "Great bikini shots of Selena Gomez? I don’t go there. I see the thing, but I see those chubby cheeks. She’s a kid. This is disgusting, that it’s happening so young."

Garlin later cleared up that he’s not trying to sound like a prude with his comments adding he "[expletive] loves women."

"I’m not like clean-cut Johnson. Maybe it’s because I know [Gomez] intimately. It’s like she’s young, she’s a kid," he continued. "It didn’t happen 30 years ago. … I’ll blame the Internet."

Garlin played Uncle Kelbo in Wizards in three episodes from 2008 until 2010.