Rebel Wilson has won a defamation case brought against her by young actress Charlotte McGuinness, who starred in The Deb, Wilson’s directorial debut. The verdict, delivered by a judge in New South Wales, Australia, followed a bench trial with no jury, and resulted in an 80-page ruling that went against McGuinness on nearly every front.
The case centered on a series of Instagram posts Wilson made beginning in September 2024, continuing through May and July 2025, published across both her personal account and the official The Deb movie page. However, the judge ultimately narrowed her focus to just the September 2024 post, citing jurisdictional reasons for setting aside the others.
A significant legal hurdle in the case was the question of which state’s laws would apply. McGuinness’s legal team pushed for Western Australia, where she grew up and where she argued her reputation had been severely damaged among family, friends, and her home community. Wilson’s team argued for New South Wales, where the posts were made. The judge sided with Wilson’s team.
That distinction mattered considerably, as New South Wales introduced a higher defamation threshold in 2021 requiring plaintiffs to demonstrate serious harm to their reputation in measurable terms, such as lost job opportunities, financial damage, or career setbacks.
The judge noted that McGuinness no longer lives in Western Australia and is now based in the UK, which further weakened arguments about local reputational harm. As the judge put it in the verdict: “It is my view that the ordinary reasonable reader would have scrolled through the post relatively quickly and his or her reaction would have been impressionistic and fleeting.”
At the core of Wilson’s defense was the argument that she had told the truth, and truth is a complete defense against defamation. The judge found that, while she did not fully believe any of the parties involved, she did accept that McGuinness had at some point told Wilson the bathroom situation had been uncomfortable. That finding was enough to support the truth defense and ultimately sink the case.
McGuinness’s legal team presented affidavits detailing the emotional toll the posts had taken on her, including accounts from family and friends. The judge acknowledged the impact but stated plainly that emotional damage alone does not meet the legal threshold required under New South Wales law. What the court required was proof of concrete professional and financial harm, and that proof was not established to the judge’s satisfaction.
Within minutes of the judgment being handed down, Wilson posted on Instagram from a makeup chair, promoting her upcoming film ‘Girl Group’, set to debut at the Toronto International Film Festival. A US case involving Wilson and other parties remains ongoing and is currently scheduled for trial in October 2026.
