Rebel Wilson’s Court Case Against Charlotte MacInnes Set to Begin in Australia
Rebel Wilson’s legal confrontation with Charlotte MacInnes, the starring actress in her first film as a director, The Deb, is scheduled to commence in Australia the following week and will be broadcast live on YouTube.
Wilson is facing a lawsuit from MacInnes in the Federal Court of Australia’s New South Wales division. MacInnes alleges that Wilson, known for her role in Pitch Perfect, tarnished her reputation by claiming she was sexually harassed by The Deb‘s producer, Amanda Ghost. Furthermore, MacInnes accuses Wilson of conspiring with Ghost to conceal the incident.
The court has planned the hearing for Monday, April 20, at 10:15 AM local time. According to the Federal Court of Australia, the session will be live-streamed on the court’s YouTube channel to maintain transparency in the proceedings. It remains uncertain if either Wilson or MacInnes will be present at the hearing.
The dispute became public in the summer of 2024 when The Deb was chosen to premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. Concerned that the issues could undermine the premiere, Wilson released a video on Instagram accusing the film’s producers of “inappropriate behavior towards the lead actress.”
Wilson claims that Ghost overstepped her boundaries by sharing a bath with MacInnes in a Sydney apartment in September 2023. While Ghost and MacInnes acknowledge that the shared bath occurred, they insist it was a non-sexual event where both wore swimsuits, following a medical incident experienced by Ghost. MacInnes has refuted claims that the incident made her uncomfortable.
This controversy is part of a broader legal conflict unfolding in both Los Angeles and Australia, overshadowing The Deb, a lighthearted film about teens in the outback attending a debutante ball. Despite its Australian release earlier this month, the film is yet to secure a distributor in the U.S.
In a related legal matter in California, Wilson is challenging a lower court’s decision that denied her anti-SLAPP motion to dismiss a defamation suit filed by The Deb’s British producers, Ghost, her husband Gregor Cameron, and Vince Holden. They accuse Wilson of defamation, alleging she lied and bullied them after being refused a writing credit for The Deb.
At an appeal hearing this week, Wilson’s lawyer, Allyson Thompson, tried to minimize the impact of the actress’s Instagram video. According to Courthouse News Service, Thompson characterized the video as a response during a “heated moment,” describing Wilson’s allegations as exaggerated, vague, and not grounded in verifiable facts.
Thompson reportedly questioned the appropriateness of the incident by asking, “When is the last time you took a bath or shower with your boss?” She emphasized that her client found the encounter inappropriate.
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