Rebel Wilson Won A Record-Breaking Settlement And It Will Make You Want To Stand Up And Cheer

Celebrity

Rebel Wilson Won A Record-Breaking Settlement And It Will Make You Want To Stand Up And Cheer

You've seen Rebel Wilson in Pitch Perfect and Bridesmaids, but the comedic actress has been at the center of a not-so-funny lawsuit.

Wilson has publicized her lawsuit against Bauer Media Group, who she claimed published a 'series of false articles' about her which cost her jobs in Hollywood. In mid-June, the actress finished her testimony against Bauer Media Group in Australia.

Just crushed my defamation case in Australia x thank you to all my family, friends and supporters! I had to take a stand. I had to stand up to a bully, a media organization Bauer Media Group who maliciously took me down in May 2015 with a series of grubby and completely false articles. Far too often tabloid magazines and the 'journalists' who work for them don't abide by professional ethics. Far too often their conduct can only be described as disgraceful and disgusting! I'm glad that the lovely ladies of the jury have agreed with me. Their unanimous and overwhelming verdict has sent a clear message. I love my job as an actress and as an entertainer and I look forward to rebuilding my career now that the record has been set straight. Thank you so much everybody!

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The jury agreed with Wilson's testimony but it took two months before the award was decided upon.

Now, the payout has been decided, and it's the largest one in Australian legal history. It also sets a precedent for future gossip sites.

So what did Wilson get, and what exactly did these false articles say that would cost Wilson work?

Two years ago, a former classmate of Wilson's 'exposed' her allegedly serial lying habit to the tabloid Woman's Day. The classmate explained how Wilson lied about her age, backstory, and even her name. Bauer Media Group went on to publish a series of eight articles with this information, which Wilson claims cost her work.

According to Dr. Matthew Collins, Rebel Wilson's lawyer, his client had been lined up for rolls in the blockbuster hits Kung Fu Panda 3 and Trolls but was let go after the claims of Wilson's serial lying surfaced. Both films said it did not look good for press to have someone with such a controversial background appear in family films.

Wilson sued Bauer Media Group and made it clear that she wanted to change the way media reports on celebrities:

"The reason I'm here is not for damages, it's to clear my name," Wilson told press outside of the courtroom. "And the fact the jury has done that unanimously and answered every single of the 40 questions in my favour I think proves what I've been saying all along. I was hoping the jury would do the right thing and send a message to these tabloids and they've done that so for me, it's over in my mind. Unfortunately, this was the only way that I could stand up to this huge media organisation was by taking them to court publicly. I'm a person that's really confident in my own skin and really felt like it was the right thing to do to take this company on and prove how disgusting and disgraceful their chequebook journalism is."

Today, it was announced that Rebel Wilson would be receiving $4.5 million AUS, which equates to $3.5 million USD. This is the largest settlement for defamation ever awarded in Australia.

"Unless substantial damages are awarded there is a real risk that the public will not be convinced of the seriousness of the defamation, but will rather wrongly conclude that the articles were trivial or not that serious," justice John Dixon said.

Wilson says she will be donating the money to charity.

Today was the end of a long and hard court battle against Bauer Media who viciously tried to take me down with a series of false articles. When the jury delivered its verdict they answered every single question in my favor. I am eternally grateful to those ladies. Today Justice Dixon gave his considered full judgement. He accepted that Bauer Media subjected me to a sustained and malicious attack timed precisely to the launch of Pitch Perfect 2. It was hurtful and devastating that a corporation would do something like that, knowing that their paid anonymous source and stories were dodgy. The learned judge accepted without qualification that I had an extremely high reputation and that the damage inflicted on me was substantial. He said that the nature of this aggravated defamation and the unprecedented extent of its dissemination (meaning it caused a worldwide media firestorm) makes vindication of particular importance. It was important for me to set the record straight, especially because I have so many young fans. I also feel like it's important to stand up to bullies. I have been awarded a record sum from Justice Dixon. I will be putting that money to good use by donating it to charity and investing in an Australian film ( but obviously can't say exactly or do anything now as I won't receive the money until everything is finalized). I thank Justice Dixon so much. And I'm looking forward to getting back to entertaining everyone!

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Do you think this will change the way tabloids write about celebrities?

Meagan has an intense love for Netflix, napping, and carbs.