Unfortunately for readers in the UK, you’ll have to dig around online for all the details on Rebel Wilson’s bombshell allegations against Sacha Baron Cohen!
As you know, Rebel called her one-time co-star a “massive a**hole” on social media due to her terrible experience working with him on The Brothers Grimsby in 2016. Why was it so horrible? In her memoir Rebel Rising, she claims Sacha humiliated her by trying to get her to stick her finger up his ass during filming. She says he gathered his entourage around her to pressure her — because it would be funny in the movie.
For his part, Sacha has insisted the allegations were false. The 52-year-old actor even tried to put a stop to her book, according to Rebel. She claimed he attempted to “threaten” her and “hired a crisis PR manager and lawyers.” However, the Senior Year star refused to let him get in the way of telling her truth. The claims came out in the US edition of the memoir earlier this month. So Sacha wasn’t successful in getting the chapter censored in the States! We assumed that was the end of it. In the UK, though? He scored a big win.
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According to Deadline on Wednesday, the chapter about his alleged inappropriate behavior on set was largely redacted in the UK edition of the memoir when it hit bookshelves on Thursday! In photos you can see the print is literally blacked out like some kind of top secret document!
This came after Sacha’s attorneys threatened to sue publisher HarperCollins over printing the allegations. A spokesperson for the Borat actor called the removal a “victory” in a statement to the outlet, saying:
“Harper Collins did not fact check this chapter in the book prior to publication and took the sensible but terribly belated step of deleting Rebel Wilson’s defamatory claims once presented with evidence that they were false. Printing falsehoods is against the law in the UK and Australia; this is not a ‘peculiarity’ as Ms. Wilson said, but a legal principle that has existed for many hundreds of years. This is a clear victory for Sacha Baron Cohen and confirms what we said from the beginning – that this is demonstrably false, in a shameful and failed effort to sell books.”
What was the so-called “evidence” they provided? We’ve heard them mention this before, but we’ve never seen it. Meanwhile Rebel has been telling the same story for years!
As for Rebel’s reaction to the censorship news? Undoubtedly, she must be disappointed some folks won’t get to read her story now. But the Pitch Perfect alum handled the situation with grace. She took to Instagram Stories on Thursday to say:
“I want to thank all the people who have come forward and acknowledge my experiences with Sacha Baron Cohen. Thank you for sharing your own stories with me. I am so grateful to you and really appreciate it.”
Her attorney, Bryan Freedman, shared a similar statement to Deadline, expressing:
“Rebel and I want to thank all the woman who have shared their stories with us about their experiences with Sacha Baron Cohen. We are grateful for their strength and bravery.”
Once again, readers across the bond won’t get the full accusations on the pages of the memoir. But you can take a look at an excerpt about her horrible time on set with Sacha HERE. Reactions, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments.
[Image via Variety/The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon/YouTube]
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