Court clears Rebel Wilson in actress defamation suit
A Sydney court has dismissed a defamation case against Rebel Wilson, underscoring the high legal threshold for proving serious reputational harm from social media posts.
A Sydney court has dismissed a defamation lawsuit brought against actor Rebel Wilson by Charlotte MacInnes, a young actress who starred in Wilson’s film The Deb. Justice Elizabeth Raper ruled that Instagram posts made by Wilson in 2024 and 2025 did not contain defamatory imputations and ordered MacInnes to pay Wilson's legal costs.
The legal battle stemmed from Wilson's public suggestion that MacInnes had retracted a complaint of sexual harassment against a film producer to advance her career. MacInnes denied this claim, and her lawyers characterized Wilson's allegations as "malicious concoctions" during a three-week trial earlier this year.
The case centred on a September 2023 incident at Bondi Beach involving MacInnes and Amanda Ghost, a producer of The Deb. After Ghost suffered an allergic reaction to cold water, the pair returned to her rented apartment, where they shared a bath while wearing swimsuits. "To say that the circumstance surrounding how they came to be in the bath are unusual would be an understatement," Raper told the court.
Raper found that MacInnes had failed to prove the posts caused or were likely to cause serious harm. Wilson's legal team successfully argued that the 2021 acting school graduate's career had not been damaged, pointing to a newly signed record deal as evidence.
During the trial, the court heard differing accounts of MacInnes's reaction to the bath. Wilson testified that MacInnes initially said she felt uncomfortable, but later texted Ghost to clarify that she just meant "it was a bizarre situation" rather than feeling personally uneasy. MacInnes's lawyers also claimed Wilson had ordered a smear website against Ghost, which the Hollywood star denied.
Following the ruling, Wilson addressed the outcome on Instagram. "The process has taught me a lot," she wrote. "It has tested me, but it has also reinforced something I've always believed. I want to live my life standing up for what I believe is right, while continuing to create work that brings people joy."
For film studios and investors navigating the post-#MeToo landscape, the verdict highlights the legal risks when cast members air workplace disputes on social media. It also underscores the strict evidentiary burden claimants now face to prove tangible financial or reputational damage in the digital age.
