Rebel yell: actor to testify in film fight with co-star
Australian A-lister Rebel Wilson will star in a real-life courtroom drama as she gives evidence in her high-profile defamation battle against the star of her directorial debut.
The Pitch Perfect star has been sued by Charlotte MacInnes, the Australian co-star of musical comedy The Deb.
MacInnes alleges Wilson slandered him in four social media posts claiming he had filed a sexual harassment complaint, then retracted it to further his career.
The dispute sparked after the young actor helped The Deb co-producer Amanda Ghost after she suffered a medical crisis at Bondi Beach in September 2023.
MacInnes says the producer helped her back to the apartment they shared with others and eventually innocently shared a bathroom in their swimsuits to warm up.
Wilson will take the Federal Court witness stand on Tuesday after flying from the US with his wife, who will testify this week.
Clues to what he might have said can be found in affidavits MacInnes filed with the court, which include portions of the older actor’s own statement.
Wilson is expected to give evidence about the claim that MacInnes told him Miss Ghost wanted them to take a bath and shower together and that it made him uncomfortable.
MacInnes denies making a complaint and claims he later explained to Wilson that the situation was awkward but that he wasn’t bothered by Ms Ghost’s presence.
Wilson testified that he overheard the producer and the young star saying intimate things to each other (mostly of a sexual nature), and that MacInnes told him it was a lie.
He also rejected Wilson’s statement that he saw Miss Ghost coercing the young actor into having a drink with him until he relented.
MacInnes’ barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC said the Bridesmaids star falsely portrayed herself as a whistleblower speaking out to protect MacInnes when in fact she was using the alleged complaint as leverage in a dispute with her co-producers.
“I was angry that Rebel claimed to be an advocate for women… but then she so maliciously and unfairly perpetuated a narrative that painted me as a liar, a slut, a sellout, and a prostitute,” MacInnes wrote in the affidavit.
Ms Chrysanthou said instead of checking in on the alleged victim of inappropriate behaviour, Wilson shared posts “berating” her client.
“This bully, apparently the savior of women, the protector of the abused, reacts this way,” he had previously told the court.
But his lawyer, Dauid Sibtain SC, said in his opening statement that although Wilson had doubts about the veracity of the alleged complaint, he had shared his concerns with others.
The real issue, he argued, was not whether MacInnes was a victim, but instead whether she complained to Wilson and then changed her story.
“Our situation is… he changed his story,” Mr. Sibtain said.
“He did this to ensure that his career as an actor and musician would progress by pleasing Miss Ghost.”
Mr Sibtain argued that, contrary to his claims, MacInnes’ reputation had not been damaged in any way by the social media posts.
Wilson is likely to be questioned over his alleged role in a hack of MacInnes’ social media account, which led to the leak of a nude photo.
The Hollywood star is also expected to be grilled on whether he was involved in creating malicious websites attacking Ms Ghost, which referenced the alleged complaint.
Wilson is accused of directing a crisis public relations team to create the websites, but denies any involvement.
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