Culture

Rebel Wilson Has Won Her Long, Bizarre Defamation Case And Slammed “Disgusting” Media

"I had to stand up to a bully."

by Chris Woods  15 June 2017
Rebel Wilson

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Following weeks of a bizarre and sometimes harrowing trial, Rebel Wilson has today won her defamation case against Bauer Media.

Over a recent three-week trial, Rebel Wilson has been put through the wringer. Wilson endured cross-examination, constant international media attention (including daily updates from Perez Hilton??), and a goddamn stalker in her pursuit to prove eight Woman’s Day articles (published in May 2015 and claiming Wilson had lied about her age, name and maybe even her entire identity) had damaged her career.

Wilson also rapped, did impressions, spoke about being related to Walt Disney (??), and played an entire episode of Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery, in what’s got to be the strangest case to ever come before the Victorian Supreme Court.

Dave Hughes and Kate Langbroek were also there, for some reason (jk good job you two!).

Now, after the properly cooked trial, Wilson has won the case with a unanimous vote from jurors, and has used the issue to speak out against gutter journalism:

“I had to stand up to a bully, a huge media organisation, Bauer Media Group, who maliciously took me down in 2015 with a series of grubby and completely false articles,” Wilson said. “Far too often I feel the tabloid magazines and the journalists who work for them don’t abide by professional ethics.”

“Far too often I feel their conduct can only be described as disgusting and disgraceful,” she said. “I’m glad, very glad, that the jury has agreed with me and by their unanimous overwhelming verdict they have sent a very, very clear message.”

For a more thorough overview of misogyny in celebrity journalism, check out Sinead Stubbins’ discussion of why some women do lie about their age and why we need to stop trying to ‘catch them out’ for it.