Lead actor in Rebel Wilson's film ‘The Deb' alleges her reputation was damaged by Wilson
Lawyers for actor Charlotte MacInnes on Thursday filed a concerns notice to Rebel Wilson over a series of social media posts made by the major Aussie star.
Court documents, seen by NewsWire, allege Ms Wilson made a series of posts to Instagram which implied Ms MacInnes had changed her story about one of the film's producers, Amanda Ghost, allegedly making unwanted sexual advances towards her.
According to the court documents, the posts also allegedly suggested that she got the lead role in one Ms Ghost's productions in return, was given a record label deal, and was paid off by Ms Ghost to lie about a complaint made to Ms Wilson about the alleged sexual harassment.
Rebel Wilson has not yet responded to the claims. Picture: Instagram
The documents claim the imputations are 'false and seriously defamatory', harming Ms MacInnes' reputation at a critical point in her career.
'The Publications carried seriously defamatory imputations damaging to Ms MacInnes' personal and professional reputation,' the documents state.
'This was her first lead role in a film and you cruelled her professional reputation before she could even enjoy the benefit of the success of the film as the lead actress.'
Lawyers from law firm Giles George argue Ms Wilson's alleged statements carry particular weight within the film industry, given her success.
Ms MacInnes is seeking damages and a permanent order to stop Ms Wilson from publishing any similar statements in the future.
A series of screenshots of the alleged defamatory statements were attached in the lengthy concerns notice and seen by NewsWire.
The fresh threat comes as Ms Wilson faces unrelated allegations she tried to undermine the release of her film 'The Deb'.
Ms Wilson and the company AI film Production Limited agreed to produce the Aussie film 'The Deb' in 2023.
Court documents, also seen by NewsWire, claim Ms Wilson made allegations that producers on the film had engaged in inappropriate conduct towards the film's lead actor, embezzled money, and tried to block the film's release.
Rebel Wilson is facing separate allegations that she tried to undermine the film's release. Picture: NewsWire / Glenn Campbell
The film ultimately premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024, however the documents allege Ms Wilson then 'undermined' efforts to further distribute the film, including by again alleging the company was trying to block the film's release.
'In fact, it was Wilson who was undermining the attempts of the producers and AI Film to secure distribution deals for the Film by continuing to make public and false allegations, and by deliberately undermining the negotiations with potential distributors,' the document claims.
Proposals to distribute the film were subsequently withdrawn after Ms Wilson allegedly threatened to get an injunction to prevent its release.
Lawyers argue Ms Wilson's alleged actions have damaged the company's reputations and goodwill, undermined the value of the film's rights and led to a loss of distribution revenues.
Rebel Wilson's lawyers on Friday sought more time before the matter is next called up in court. Picture: Instagram
The document also claims Ms Wilson's alleged behaviour was in breach of her contract.
Lawyers on behalf of AI Film are pushing for damages, statutory compensation, an apology, and corrective advertising.
Further, they're seeking an order to prevent the actor from making any statements similar to those alleged in the documents.
The matter was heard briefly in the NSW Supreme Court on Friday, where lawyer Sue Chrysanthou argued against a bid by Ms Wilson's lawyers for a delay in the case.
'Your Honour we oppose that, the defendants were served on the day of filing, the day after…(Ms Wilson) went online to her social media and complained about the proceedings and repeated the conduct alleged,' Ms Chrysanthou told the court.
Justice Elisabeth Peden ultimately granted a slightly shorter adjournment than Ms Wilson's lawyers were seeking, with the matter to return to court in September.
Clareese Packer
Reporter
Clareese is a Court Reporter at NewsWire. She previously covered breaking news for the outlet after completing the 2023 NewsCorp cadet program, where she worked at The Australian, news.com.au, The Daily Telegraph, the National News Network and NewsWire.
Clareese Packer
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
a minute ago
- News.com.au
Sydney Sweeney appeared ‘annoyed' and ‘uncomfortable' according to ‘The Times' article
They say all publicity is good publicity, and Sydney Sweeney is a walking example of this as one of the most talked about and in-demand stars in Hollywood right now. 'But who is Sydney Sweeney really?' The Times UK writer Megan Agnew questions at the beginning of an insightful profile piece about the 27-year-old actress published on Sunday. The publication has attempted to crack the veneer of the headline-magnet that is Sweeney, who shot to fame in Euphoria before swiftly becoming a bona fide pop culture sex symbol and a shrewd businesswoman as the founder of her own production company. In the Times ' 50-minute interview with Sweeney, which took place back in April (prior to Sweeney being engulfed in the ongoing PR storm surrounding her American Eagle denim ad) – Agnew admits drawing meaningful insights from the star is 'hard work'. 'Sweeney was early to our interview by an hour (unheard of) when I met her in a Hollywood photo studio. I was thrilled — until I realised it was a reflection of her keenness to leave rather than her enthusiasm to arrive,' Agnew writes. What soon unravels in the article is a description of Sweeney that paints her both as a hungry go-getter 'keen to make money', and a cautious approach so as not to say anything too contentious. At times, Agnew writes Sweeney is visibly uncomfortable and regularly seeking assurance from her two publicists – even before her latest, loudest controversy. 'A petite 5ft 3in, she sat with her legs folded, fidgeting with little boxes of make-up and often talking to her publicists on the other side of the room. She pulled as far back from me as she could,' Agnew writes. 'I could feel the height of her fresh fame acutely, her words put so carefully one in front of the other that it sometimes felt she was doing everything she could to sound boring.' Agnew points heavily to the media furore surrounding Sweeney's American Eagle denim ad, which faced backlash over claims it pushed 'eugenics' and 'White supremacy' messaging. Sweeney was subsequently identified as a registered Republican in Florida as of June last year. The Anyone But You star previously come under question for her political stance after sharing photos of her mother's 60th birthday celebrations in 2022, in which guests wore 'Make sixty great again' caps in reference to President Donald Trump's election slogan. Agnew suspects the backlash Sweeney has faced to date was the reason for her 'wariness' in the interview. 'In fact, she exhibited such discomfort about being there for the 50 minutes — in order to promote a new movie as well as a number of brands — that it verged on annoyance,' Agnew writes. Elsewhere in the chat, Sweeney talks about her love of real estate, her property portfolio and collection of luxury cars. 'Each property has its own vibe,' she told the Times. 'So it needs its own cars to go with the vibe.' Agnew notes Sweeney quickly paused, before shooting a look to her two publicists in the room. 'I suspect Sweeney knew all too well, even then, the consequences of saying anything that meant very much at all,' Agnew observes. Sweeney later admitted to being uncomfortable with fame. 'Privacy [is] huge,' she said. 'You don't realise how much that means until you lose it. I see all the time, 'Oh, they sold themselves, they knew what they were signing up for'. But 18-year-old me had no idea what she was signing up for. 'I've always been guarded. Definitely more so now. You let few people in who you trust.' She said her work ethic, and desire to be financially independent, stemmed from her humble upbringing, in which her hardworking parents moved from Washington to Hollywood heartland, Burbank, so Sweeney could pursue her acting career. The trio, along with Sweeney's younger brother Trent, lived in a modest one-bedroom flat. 'We were sharing a one-bedroom hotel room — no kitchen, no balcony,' Sweeney remembered. 'A pullout sofa bed, where my dad and brother slept, my mum and me in the bed. We'd run around the different hallways and find stairwells and make friends with all the staff. 'I just knew that I'd never allow myself to fail. 'I will always want to work harder, achieve more. I love to work. There's 24 hours in a day, obviously, but I make sure that there's 26 for me.'
News.com.au
31 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Sydney light rail: Alarming near-miss incidents caught on camera
Heartstopping footage has captured the moment a man was almost struck by a tram in Sydney. The vision shows a tram rumbling along at night, as two people break out into a run to get across the tracks. As the tram is just metres away, another person - seemingly absent-mindedly - almost follows their lead before a bystander yanks him back by his backpack, stopping him from being hit by a matter of seconds. The hair-raising miss was just one of a number of clips reelased by the NSW government as part of the annual Rail Safety Week awareness campaign. The CCTV footage was captured on-board light rail vehicles in Sydney, the city's eastern suburbs, Parramatta and Newcastle. According to government figures, there have been more vehicle near-misses on the new Parramatta system in the past 12 months than other lines as Western Sydney adjusts to the new format. 'These moments are hard to watch because in some cases there are just centimetres or milliseconds from the result being so much worse,' Transport Minister John Graham said. 'Light rail vehicles can't deviate their path and at 85 tonnes when fully loaded, they take time to stop. 'Please stay alert and follow the rules to ensure your own safety and the people you are with. 'Whether you're a pedestrian, a cyclist, or a driver, it is so important to take responsibility for your own safety.' The footage shows cars darting in front of moving trams, motorbikes and scooters cutting across the tracks when it is not safe, and pedestrians almost being run over. The trams drivers slam on their own brakes in the most dangerous of the clips. The chaos isn't confined to the Sydney area. A compilation of clips from the Newcastle area shows even wilder near-misses, and a few crashes too. The Newcastle videos show people driving their cars on the tracks, a cyclist's front tyre becoming stuck in the track and flipping onto the concrete, and a 4WD ute being struck and spun out by a tram which the driver cut off. The 20th annual Rail Safety Week begins on Monday.
Daily Telegraph
34 minutes ago
- Daily Telegraph
Erin Patterson: Moment mushroom cook's husband suspected deadly lunch plot
Don't miss out on the headlines from National Breaking News. Followed categories will be added to My News. When Simon Patterson learnt each of his parents and aunt and uncle were ill following a lunch at his wife's home, he sprung into action. Don Patterson, his father, called him about 8.45am on July 30, 2023, to say they had been experiencing vomiting and diarrhoea since about midnight and were waiting for an ambulance. Don also told him Heather and Ian Wilkinson were sick too. 'I wasn't really sure what to do,' he told Patterson's trial in May. 'I tried both their mobile phones, but I didn't get an answer.' Simon Patterson remains married to Erin Patterson. Picture: NewsWire / David Geraghty Simon jumped in the car and drove around to his aunt and uncle's house to check in, finding them 'sick, grey and stooped'. Despite the pair's reluctance, he convinced them they too needed to go to a hospital and took them himself after being warned an ambulance could be an hour away. He had good reason to be worried. Within a week Don, Simon's mother, Gail Patterson and Heather would be dead, and Ian would be fighting for his life. The quartet had eaten lunch the day prior at Simon's estranged wife Erin Patterson's home in the country Victorian town of Leongatha. Simon himself had been invited but pulled out the night before, texting Patterson he was too uncomfortable to attend. She responded by trying to guilt him into coming. 'That's really disappointing. I've spent many hours this week preparing lunch … because I wanted it to be a special meal,' she wrote. 'I hope you'll change your mind. Your parents and Heather and Ian are coming at 12.30. I hope to see you there.' Simon's reasons for why he didn't want to attend can now be revealed after Justice Christopher Beale lifted a suppression order barring media from reporting on pre-trial rulings in the case. During these pre-trial hearings, Simon revealed he had begun to fear his wife was poisoning him in the year before the lunch after a spate of serious but unexplained illnesses. 'I thought there was a risk she would poison me if I attended,' he said of his reason for turning down the lunch invite. Erin Patterson's trial spanned 11 weeks. Picture: NewsWire / Paul Tyquin He was hospitalised in November 2021, May 2022, July 2022 and September 2022 — and over time began to believe he could trace these illnesses to meals made by Patterson. On each occasion, Simon said he had begun experiencing gastro-like symptoms that quickly worsened. But each time doctors were unable to identify the cause of the mystery illnesses. On the advice of his GP Chris Ford, Simon began to trace what he had eaten before each of the illnesses in about July 2022. 'I asked him to do that because I couldn't understand why these things kept happening to him in such a way that he'd had essentially three near-death experiences,' Dr Ford told the court. 'It didn't fit into my medical models to account for anything.' Simon told the court he initially didn't seriously entertain the possibility Patterson was poisoning him until after a conversation with his cousin Tim Patterson in about September 2022. 'When I made the spreadsheet and looked at what I'd come up with my thought was this could appear to someone else looking at this that Erin was a cause because of her cooking the food,' Simon said. Dr Ford told the court Simon first raised the suspicion at a consult on February 21, 2023. 'I do recall, as a result, Simon elected to change his advanced care directives,' he said. Asked if he took it seriously, Dr Ford said: 'It was a possible explanation, yes.' 'He told me his perspective of what happened,' he said. 'To me, there was no other medical reason that could fit all of the different admissions. It seemed feasible that it could be a possible explanation.' Simon's sister Anna Terrington and brother Matthew Patterson (right). Picture: NewsWire/Ian Currie Dr Ford and Tim Patterson were among a small group Simon shared his concerns with, including his sister Anna Terrington, brother Matthew and father Don. Simon described his father's reaction to the news, delivered months ahead of the lunch in late February, as 'very thoughtful'. 'He said 'I suggest you don't tell too many people about that',' Simon told the court. 'I thought I had a reasonable sense why he would say that … probably because that could create issues in the way they relate, especially with Erin and our family.' From the moment Simon learnt his parents and aunt and uncle were ill, he suspected his wife was the culprit. Don and Gail Patterson. Picture: 7 News He rang Dr Ford that morning to express his concerns and because the GP had promised to expend every effort to make sure toxicological testing was conducted should there be another illness. Dr Ford said he was packing for a week-long trip, but called a colleague he knew was working on-call at Leongatha Hospital, Dr Chris Webster, to warn him there may be patients coming in. 'It was along the lines of 'Hi Chris, I know this is a bit unusual, there are two people coming to you who I suspect might have deliberate food poisoning based on previous events that have gone on with one of my patients',' he recounted of the call. Dr Chris Webster said he thought the call was 'bizarre'. Picture: NewsWire / Nicki Connolly Dr Ford said he tried to call the Korumburra Hospital but could not get through, so he drove to the hospital. He said he had a 'very similar conversation' to the one with Dr Webster, telling a doctor there was a suspicion of deliberate poisoning and to watch out for a decline in their condition. Dr Webster told the pre-trial hearing he thought Dr Ford's call was 'bizarre' but he acknowledged the concerns and thanked him for the warning. He said he told a nurse at the hospital they might be getting a patient from Dr Ford's church congregation, remarking: 'It looks like someone's trying to take out the church community.' Dr Webster told the court the following morning, on July 31, he received a call from Dandenong Hospital's Dr Beth Morgan about the case. He said Dr Morgan advised him Don and Gail had been moved to her hospital and it was now suspected the quartet had consumed death cap mushrooms. Patterson left hospital about five minutes after attending. Picture: Supplied/ Supreme Court of Victoria. At 8.05am that morning, Dr Webster said Erin Patterson attended the hospital and he explained there was a concern that all lunch guests, herself included, had consumed death caps. 'It was along the lines of the doctors at Dandenong believe you've been exposed to potentially lethal death cap mushroom toxins,' he said. The court was told five minutes later Ms Patterson discharged herself against medical advice saying she needed to make preparations before she could be admitted. She returned at 9.48am but not before Dr Webster called the local police due to his concern for her welfare. Dr Webster told the court he had stepped away from Ms Patterson but soon learnt she had left. 'Where the f*** did she go?' he said he questioned nurse Kylie Ashton. 'I've just told her she's been exposed to a potentially fatal dose. I would have thought a hospital would be a good place to stay. 'My initial impression of Dr Ford's phone call as bizarre had dramatically changed by that point.' After her arrest over the July 2023 fatal lunch, Patterson was initially charged with three counts of attempted murder over Simon's illnesses. These were later dropped by prosecutors after a ruling by Justice Beale would have split the case into two trials — one for the deadly lunch and a second for Simon's illnesses. Prosecutors had not alleged Simon's illnesses were caused by death cap mushroom poisoning, but that he was allegedly poisoned with unidentified toxic compounds. But during the pre-trial, intensive care specialist Professor Andrew Bersten gave evidence he had reviewed all of Simon's medical notes and found there were no identifiable causes. Patterson was found guilty of murdering Don Patterson, Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson and the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson following an 11-week trial earlier this year. She will face a pre-sentence hearing on August 25. Originally published as Erin Patterson: Moment mushroom cook's husband suspected deadly lunch plot
