Rebel Wilson has won a defamation case against actor-turned-singer Charlotte MacInnes. MacInnes alleged Wilson had implied she was a liar and a sellout who withdrew a sexual harassment complaint to further her career. Wilson denied the accusations and said she was telling the truth. The Federal Court judge found in favour of Wilson, stating MacInnes had failed to establish that the publications had caused or were likely to cause serious harm.
Actor turned singer Charlotte MacInnes released a song including lyrics about being thrown to the wolves just before losing her defamation case against Hollywood A-lister Rebel Wilson.
The legal dispute between the two Australians ended on Wednesday when a Federal Court judge found Wilson had not defamed the younger woman in a series of social media posts. MacInnes, who played the lead role in Wilson's directorial debut film The Deb, alleged the Pitch Perfect star had implied she was a liar and a sellout who withdrew a sexual harassment complaint to further her career.
Wilson's posts alleged MacInnes confided - and later recanted - she had felt uncomfortable when The Deb's co-producer Amanda Ghost, 49, asked to have a shower and a bath together. MacInnes, who was then 25, denied making or retracting a complaint, insisting she had not been uncomfortable when the pair shared a bath in their swimwear in September 2023.
She gave evidence that Ghost had suffered a medical episode when the pair went swimming at Bondi Beach, before they ended up in the bath at the apartment they were sharing. MacInnes's song Only Pretend - the third track of her debut EP Highwater, released on June 26 - included the lyrics: 'Threw me to the wolves, Wasn't yours to give away; I hear stories, So I run to the waves...
' The chorus also features references to 'ghost'. MacInnes posted the lyrics to all five tracks on Highwater to her Instagram account early on Wednesday morning with the caption: 'HIGHWATER lyrics!! What I would've put in the CD booklet if we still made those.
' The 28-year-old's barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC had accused Wilson of a 'complete revision of history' littered with dishonesty during her closing address in May. 'She is a fantastical liar who has made up terrible, terrible allegations about multiple people and her own witnesses have discredited her,' she said. 'We say Ms Wilson cannot be believed on anything she has said.
' MacInnes's song Only Pretend - the third track of her debut EP Highwater, released on June 26 - included the lyrics, 'Threw me to the wolves, Wasn't yours to give away; I hear stories, So I run to the waves... ' Wilson alleged MacInnes confided - and later recanted - she had felt uncomfortable when The Deb's co-producer Amanda Ghost asked to have a shower and a bath together.
Wilson repeatedly denied accusations she fabricated the complaint or raised it for leverage during disputes with her co-producers over the film's budget and writing credit.
'I am known as a truth-teller,' she declared. And that was what Wilson had been doing when she posted the stories to her 11million followers, the Bridesmaids star said.
'I don't classify it as an attack, I classify it as telling the truth,' Wilson told the court. Wilson's barrister David Sibtain SC said his client had 'no motive to lie' about something that would endanger her film by driving a wedge between her lead actor and a producer. Instead, Mr Sibtain accused MacInnes of dishonestly withdrawing the complaint about Ghost to ensure her relationship with the producer continued to be beneficial.
He argued MacInnes had received a lead role in a stage production and a six-figure record deal that were linked to Ghost, and wanted to ensure she continued to advance her career.
'Ms MacInnes is someone who gave false evidence under oath,' Mr Sibtain said. Two months after the conclusion of evidence and submissions, Justice Elizabeth Raper found in favour of Wilson. MacInnes sought aggravated damages for the harm allegedly wrought by the posts, including anxiety, and a period without work. Two months after the conclusion of evidence and submissions, Justice Elizabeth Raper found in favour of Wilson.
'MacInnes has failed to establish that the publications have caused or were likely to cause serious harm,' she said on Wednesday
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