Australian actor tearfully tells jury in Melbourne her career was damaged by ‘nasty’ Bauer Media articles that painted her as a serial liar

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Rebel Wilson described herself as a “cashed-up bogan” and performed a rap of an Oscar-winning speech from the witness box on Tuesday during her defamation case against the publisher of Woman’s Day.

In the Supreme Court of Victoria, Wilson gave the brief performance, which arose from a hallucination she’d had while suffering malaria as a teenager, in a bid to prove to an all-woman jury she hadn’t embellished her background.

Rebel Wilson's 'world collapsed' after Bauer Media painted her as a liar, court told Read more

Wilson is suing Bauer Media over a series of articles she claims painted her as a fake and a liar by claiming she’d lied about her age, name and background. She claims the articles damaged her career.

Wilson also described a hair-raising encounter while travelling through Africa in which she witnessed crossfire and dead bodies.

She described her childhood, travelling around on the weekends to dog shows with her family in a caravan with their family business Petcetera Etcetera, and selling animal toys and dog chocolates that she’d developed a taste for.

Wilson, 37, described herself as a proud bogan. “I use it very endearingly,” she said. “I definitely consider myself a bogan, although now I’d probably be a cashed-up bogan.”

A full episode of ABC TV show Home Delivery was also screened during the trial, in which Wilson is seen taking the host through the Sydney suburb in which she grew up, childhood home and schools.

The actor told the jury of the tough time she’d had to start securing roles in Hollywood – and how that was all shattered when Bauer Media published what she claims were defamatory, “malicious” articles about her.

The Californian resident teared up while remembering what she’d felt when she read the articles, saying defence claims that the articles were not “nasty” were like a knife being stuck “further into me”.

The case continues.