Rebel Wilson wins defamation case brought by actress from her film

Rebel Wilson walked out of a Sydney courtroom on Wednesday with a legal victory that cost Charlotte MacInnes dearly. Justice Elizabeth Raper dismissed the defamation case the young Australian actress had brought against the Bridesmaids star, and ordered MacInnes to pay Wilson's legal costs—a decision that hinged on whether Instagram posts from 2024 and 2025 had actually damaged MacInnes's reputation, and whether they were even defamatory to begin with.

The dispute traced back to September 2023, when MacInnes and Amanda Ghost, a producer on Wilson's film The Deb, found themselves in an unusual situation at Bondi Beach. Ghost had suffered an allergic reaction to the cold water, and the two women returned to Ghost's rented luxury apartment. After Ghost showered, MacInnes ran a bath to warm up. She got in wearing her swimsuit. Ghost joined her shortly after, also in a swimsuit. The judge would later remark from the bench that the circumstances surrounding how they came to be in the bath together were, to put it mildly, strange.

What happened next became the crux of the case. Wilson claimed that MacInnes had spoken to her the day after the incident, describing it as uncomfortable. When Wilson called MacInnes again to discuss the bath situation—concerned about what had occurred—the conversation apparently shifted. Wilson then texted Ghost with a summary of their call: "Charlotte says all good. She just meant 'it was a bizarre situation' not that she felt personally uncomfortable." That distinction would matter enormously.

On Instagram, Wilson posted that MacInnes had retracted her complaint of sexual harassment against Ghost in order to advance her career. MacInnes denied this characterization entirely. Her legal team argued that Wilson's allegations were deliberate fabrications designed to harm her, and they pointed to claims that Wilson had even commissioned a smear website targeting Ghost—accusations Wilson rejected. But the court found something different. Justice Raper concluded that the posts did not constitute defamation because the imputation that MacInnes had changed her account of events was not, in legal terms, defamatory. The judge also found that MacInnes had failed to establish that the posts had caused or were likely to cause serious harm to her reputation.

Wilson's lawyers had argued throughout the three-week trial that MacInnes had suffered no real damage anyway. They pointed to a recent record deal she had signed as evidence that her career had not been harmed by the Instagram posts. The court agreed that serious harm had not been demonstrated.

Minutes after the verdict, Wilson posted on Instagram again. She wrote that the legal process had tested her but also reinforced her commitment to standing up for what she believed was right, and to creating work that brings people joy. She thanked her supporters, the judge, and the Australian legal system. The case, she said, had reached its conclusion.

MacInnes has not yet responded publicly to the decision. The verdict leaves unresolved the deeper question of what actually happened in that apartment in September 2023, and why two women in swimsuits bathing together became the subject of such serious legal dispute. What is clear is that Wilson's version of events—or at least her right to post about them—has been vindicated by the court.