That is an absolutely outrageous statement to make
In a Sydney Federal Court, actress and director Rebel Wilson faces a defamation lawsuit brought by her younger co-star Charlotte MacInnes, a case that asks the court to untangle whether public allegations of harassment were acts of advocacy or instruments of commercial pressure. Wilson has denied both defaming MacInnes through social media and orchestrating a cyber attack that exposed intimate photographs — accusations she calls absurd. The trial sits at the intersection of power, reputation, and the contested terrain of who controls a story once it leaves private hands.
- A nude photograph leaked from MacInnes' hacked Snapchat account days after she filed her lawsuit, leaving her, in her own words, gripped by a terrifying new kind of anxiety.
- Wilson flatly rejected accusations of hacking or directing anyone else to do so, but the timing of the breach has cast a long shadow over her credibility in the witness box.
- The trial has exposed Wilson's connection to a PR firm — The Agency Group — previously linked to smear campaigns in Hollywood, raising questions about how far her strategic communications extended.
- MacInnes' barrister argues Wilson weaponized harassment allegations as leverage against film producers, while Wilson insists she was simply a truth-teller paying a steep personal price.
- With competing claims of fabrication, retaliation, and reputational harm, the court must now determine whether this is a story about protecting a young woman or about power dressed as principle.
Rebel Wilson took the witness stand in Federal Court on Thursday and rejected with force the claim that she had arranged a cyber attack on her co-star Charlotte MacInnes. The idea that she moonlighted as a hacker, she said, was absurd — and the suggestion that she had directed someone else to do it drew an equally emphatic denial.
The case centres on Wilson's directorial debut, The Deb, and a collision of competing narratives that followed its production. MacInnes, 27, alleges Wilson defamed her through social media posts portraying her as a liar who had withdrawn a sexual harassment complaint to advance her career. Wilson's account differs: she says MacInnes made a complaint about feeling uncomfortable after co-producer Amanda Ghost proposed bathing together, then retracted it — a reversal Wilson claims she simply relayed to others. MacInnes denies making or withdrawing any such complaint.
The hack of MacInnes' Snapchat account, which resulted in a leaked nude photograph, occurred in September 2025 — just days after MacInnes filed her lawsuit. In a court affidavit, MacInnes said she believed Wilson had arranged it. Wilson dismissed this, along with a separate accusation that she had stalked MacInnes to track her whereabouts.
The trial has also drawn attention to Wilson's use of The Agency Group, a PR firm retained by her US lawyer in July 2024 at $25,000 per month. Wilson testified the agreement had been sent to her lawyer rather than commissioned by her directly, though she acknowledged receiving it. The firm has separately been linked to smear campaigns targeting actor Blake Lively, adding scrutiny to its role here.
Wilson's legal team contends MacInnes fabricated or embellished her account and has suffered no genuine reputational harm. MacInnes' barrister countered that Wilson raised the complaint only after MacInnes had indicated the matter was resolved, and that she did so to strengthen her position in negotiations with producers. The court continues to weigh whether Wilson's conduct amounts to defamation, whether the cyber attack allegations hold, and whether this dispute is ultimately about protecting a young actor or about leverage.
Rebel Wilson sat in the witness box of Federal Court on Thursday and flatly rejected the notion that she had orchestrated a cyber attack against her co-star. The accusation, she said, was absurd—that she somehow moonlighted as a hacker. When pressed on whether she had directed someone else to carry out the breach, she was equally emphatic: obviously not.
Wilson is defending herself against a defamation lawsuit brought by Charlotte MacInnes, a 27-year-old actor who starred in The Deb, Wilson's directorial debut. The case hinges on a tangle of competing claims about harassment, retaliation, and the weaponization of allegations in a commercial dispute. MacInnes alleges that Wilson defamed her through social media posts suggesting she was a liar who had retracted a sexual harassment complaint to advance her career. Wilson's version is different: MacInnes made a complaint about feeling uncomfortable when the film's co-producer Amanda Ghost proposed showering and bathing together in September 2023, then later walked it back—a reversal Wilson claims she simply reported to others.
MacInnes denies ever making such a complaint or retracting one. More seriously, she claims Wilson orchestrated a hack of her Snapchat account that resulted in a nude photograph being leaked. The breach occurred in September 2025, just days after MacInnes filed her lawsuit. In an affidavit to the court, MacInnes wrote that she believed Wilson had arranged the attack. "It was completely terrifying and caused me a new kind of anxiety," she stated. She also accused Wilson of stalking her to determine her whereabouts—another charge Wilson dismissed as outrageous during cross-examination.
The trial has also surfaced questions about Wilson's use of a PR firm called The Agency Group. Court documents show that in July 2024, Wilson's US lawyer retained the firm for strategic communication services at a rate of $25,000 per month. Wilson testified that the agreement had been sent to her lawyer rather than being something she herself had commissioned, though she acknowledged receiving it. MacInnes' barrister, Sue Chrysanthou SC, pressed her on the arrangement, suggesting Wilson had been dishonest about her involvement for a year. Wilson denied the accusation. The Agency Group has also been accused of creating smear websites targeting Hollywood actor Blake Lively on behalf of her co-star Justin Baldoni, adding another layer of scrutiny to the firm's operations.
Wilson's legal team argues that MacInnes fabricated or exaggerated the complaint and then changed her story to benefit from her association with Ghost, whose career assistance has helped MacInnes advance professionally. Her barrister, Dauid Sibtain SC, contends that MacInnes has suffered no reputational harm from Wilson's social media posts and therefore has no grounds for her defamation claim. Wilson herself has characterized her actions as those of a champion of women who was simply telling the truth, albeit at significant personal and professional cost. She rejected suggestions that she had used the alleged complaint as leverage in a dispute with her co-producers, insisting she received no benefit from the experience that led to the court case.
Chrysanthou countered that Wilson had raised the complaint only after MacInnes had indicated everything was resolved, and that Wilson had done so to strengthen her hand in negotiations with her producers. The barrister also highlighted the disparity in power and resources between the two women, though Wilson pushed back, noting that MacInnes appeared to be living a luxurious international lifestyle. As Wilson entered the courthouse on Thursday, she mentioned that her wife had not yet given birth to their second child, a detail that underscored the personal disruption the trial has caused. The case continues to unfold, with the court still weighing whether Wilson's actions constitute defamation, whether the cyber attack allegations have merit, and whether the dispute is fundamentally about protecting a young actor or about leverage in a commercial negotiation.
Citas Notables
It was completely terrifying and caused me a new kind of anxiety— Charlotte MacInnes, describing the impact of the social media hack
All I have done is told the truth at significant cost to myself, at significant detriment— Rebel Wilson, on her decision to speak about the alleged complaint
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why would Wilson deny the hacking so forcefully if there's any chance she was involved?
Because the accusation is categorical—that she personally did it or ordered it done. Those are two different things legally and morally. She's saying she had nothing to do with it at all.
But there's a PR firm in the picture, The Agency Group, and they're being paid $25,000 a month. Doesn't that suggest she was trying to control the narrative?
That's what the other side is arguing. Wilson says her lawyer hired them, not her directly. But the court documents show the agreement was addressed to her. It's murky—and that murkiness is exactly what the trial is supposed to clarify.
The nude photo leak happened right after MacInnes filed the lawsuit. That timing seems damning.
It does look suspicious. But timing alone isn't proof. MacInnes believes Wilson orchestrated it. Wilson says she didn't. The court has to decide who's credible, and whether there's actual evidence linking Wilson to the hack.
What about the original complaint—about the shower and bath request? Who's telling the truth there?
That's the core of it. Wilson says MacInnes made the complaint and then said it was fine. MacInnes says she never made it at all. If MacInnes is lying about that, it undermines her entire case. If Wilson is lying, it suggests she weaponized a complaint to damage someone.
So this isn't really about hacking. It's about whether Wilson abused her power as a director.
Exactly. The hacking is one piece. The real question is whether Wilson used allegations—real or invented—as a tool in a business dispute with her producers, and whether she then defamed MacInnes by spreading her version of events.