Rebel Wilson has been barred from pursuing parts of her cross-complaint in a US court fight concerning the production of her troubled directorial debut, The Deb.
Ms Wilson’s directorial debut is the centre of two court proceedings in Australia, as well as a defamation case in the US.
The film’s co-producers, Vince Holden, Gregor Cameron, and Amanda Ghost launched defamation proceedings against Ms Wilson in California last July over allegations the Aussie actor made false statements about the producers blocking the film’s release, embezzling some of the film’s funds, and that they had engaged in inappropriate conduct towards the film’s lead actor.
Ms Wilson filed a cross-complaint against the producers and a string of companies, including A.I. Film production, months later alleging the producers’ involvement in the film was marked by “a troubling pattern of illicit egregious behaviours, including theft, bullying and sexual misconduct”.
Ms Ghost also filed a cross-complaint this year, claiming Ms Wilson and others created websites to defame her.
An order preventing Ms Wilson from pursuing several allegations in her US cross-claim, including claims Mr Cameron and Mr Holden breached their duties by allegedly embezzling $900,000 of the film’s budget, was ordered by the Supreme Court of NSW on Monday.
Camera IconRebel Wilson has been barred from pursuing parts of her cross-complaint in her cross-claim in US defamation proceedings. 60 Minutes Credit: Supplied Source Known
Ms Wilson is also prevented from pursuing claims that Ms Ghost and A.I. Film allegedly breached contractual obligations in her US cross-claim.
While the anti-suit injunction was ordered by Justice Elisabeth Peden, in relation to some parts of Wilson’s claim, the court upheld the actor’s ability to pursue other claims in California.
“There is valid concern that not injuncting part of the cross-complaint risks conflicting findings or inconsistent judgments between the Californian and NSW courts,” Justice Peden found.
Wilson claims she was ‘targeted’ on set in Aussie court fight
The company A.I. Film Production agreed to produce and develop the Australian film alongside Ms Wilson in 2023, but have since launched proceedings against the Aussie actor in Australia.
In the Australian case, A.I. Film allege Ms Wilson made claims the film’s producers had tried to block the film’s release and embezzled funds, according to court documents released by the court and seen by NewsWire.
“In fact, it was Wilson who was undermining the attempts of the producers and A.I. Film to secure distribution deals for the Film by continuing to make public and false allegations, and by deliberately undermining the negotiations with potential distributors,” the documents state.
It is alleged Ms Wilson breached her contractual obligations as a result, with A.I. Film pushing for damages, compensation, corrective advertising, and an apology.
Camera IconRebel Wilson. NewsWire / Christian Gilles Credit: News Corp AustraliaCamera IconAustralian actor Charlotte MacInnes is the star of Ms Wilson’s film The Deb. Supplied. Credit: Supplied
Ms Wilson’s legal team have denied these allegations, and have claimed she was subjected to “retaliatory bullying and harassment” by the producers and was “targeted” on set.
“Ms Wilson was targeted on set on most, if not all, days during production of the Film and her directing, acting, performing and leadership were undermined,” documents filed by Ms Wilson’s team state.
Ms Wilson’s team further claim the film’s producers “threatened to stop funding the film every two or three days”.
The company has also alleged Ms Wilson falsely claimed one of the producers, Amanda Ghost, had engaged in inappropriate conduct towards the film’s lead actor.
These allegations are the subject of a separate defamation case launched by the actor, Charlotte MacInnes, in the NSW registry of the Federal Court against Wilson.
It concerns social media posts allegedly made by Ms Wilson which are said to imply that Ms MacInnes lied when denying she made a complaint about Ms Ghost allegedly sexually harassing her or engaging in other unacceptable behaviour that made her feel uncomfortable, documents state.
The posts also allegedly imply that Ms MacInnes “changed her story” about the alleged complaint in return for a lead role in another of Ms Ghost’s productions and a record deal.
None of the allegations in any of the three cases have yet been tested in court.
