‘The truth will come out’ Sacha refutes Rebel’s claims
Rebel Wilson opens up about her controversial new book RebelRising…
Hollywood star Rebel Wilson, 44, has been hitting the headlines recently over the release of her new book, RebelRising. The autobiography chronicles her life and career, her unconventional journey to stardom – plus the emotional and physical lessons she has learnt along the way. The actress, comedian, writer, singer and producer – who made a name for herself through her iconic roles in PitchPerfect, Bridesmaids and Isn’t ItRomantic, talks about her book and the current controversy surrounding it, including her opinion of former TheBrothers Grimsby co-star Sacha Baron Cohen, who she refers to as an ‘a**hole’...
Firstly, Rebel, why did you decide to write a memoir?
So in 2020, I did this experiment on myself called ‘the year of health’. And I lost a lot of weight in that year. And then that garnered a lot of attention, like more attention than any movie I’d done. I was like, ‘Ah!’ [ laughs]. And then I got offered to write a book about the experience. I was pretty open on social media about it, but there was still lots to that story to tell. And so I paired up a publisher to do a book and originally, it was just gonna be ‘year of health’ and just talking about weight. And when I got into thinking about my relationship with food and emotional eating and I just thought, ‘ Well, there’s so many things about my life and my past that go into this. And it’s very boring to write a book about, ‘Oh, yeah, I exercise for twoand-a-half hours a day and drink eight glasses of water…’
So while you were writing the book, was it cathartic for you?
Well, on the one hand, it’s terrifying to be on and off for two years, be in one room by myself. Because if I’m writing I can’t have any noise, if somebody’s doing the dishes, I’m like, ‘No!’ I can’t have anyone around when I write. And so it’s just on and off for a couple of weeks intensively, and then I’d go and do a movie or something, and then I’d come back and intensively write. And it was just my little thing, and it was my own private thoughts. And so I’m very anxious about it coming out into the world. But then on the other side, it is like the final release, I guess, of all those emotions. Because there’s some pretty embarrassing things about myself, when I lost my virginity quite late in life and things like that, that I put in the book. And I’m thinking ‘Argh!’ But I just thought if I’m writing, I’m writing everything and just being really raw and honest. So on the one hand, that’s hard to be that vulnerable and put it out in the world. But on the other side, I think it is cathartic.
Sacha Baron Cohen, who announced his split from wife Isla Fisher on 5 April, issued a statement in response to Rebel’s claims: ‘While we appreciate the importance of speaking out, these demonstrably false claims are directly contradicted by extensive detailed evidence, including contemporaneous documents, film footage, and eyewitness accounts from
When you are talking about your childhood, there is a line in your book where you say ‘being invisible is better than being bullied’?
Yeah, so that’s in High School. I was pretty shy up until about the age of 14 or 15. Painfully shy. And then I realised, first of all, I was in the cool group for two weeks until they asked me to smoke. And then I go, ‘I don’t smoke’ – and then they cut me out of the group. I had no friends, zero. I would have to eat my lunch in the library every day, just by myself. I went to an all-girls school and girls can be quite mean at times. And then I realised it’s better to be an invisible person rather than the dorky girl who gets bullied, because that was a worse position than being totally ignored. So I just became that person you wouldn’t even notice I was in the room, I don’t think.
What was the hardest chapter for you to write in this book?
Probably, the stuff about my father who passed away. And there’s a bit in the chapter in the book that is about the last time I saw him. We had a very estranged relationship.
Let’s talk about the chapter about Sacha Baron Cohen (who is now getting a divorce
those present before, during and after the production of The Brothers Grimsby.’
from actress Isla Fisher), which has been hitting the headlines – how has that been for you?
Well, it’s hard, because that’s only just one chapter in the book. The book is not about that guy. But it’s about kind of the worst professional experience I ever had on a movie. And it was obviously with him. But what’s really difficult is when you write your truth, not everyone is going to like it. And when someone is an a**hole, you know, I kind of expected he would come out and fiercely deny it, which is so weird when you’ve been there. You know, it’s happened. The book gets legally vetted before publishing…
You trained as a lawyer – you know how this works?
Yeah. I know. I mean, I’m well-versed in defamation. And then yeah, it was just a very odd reaction to have. But I always think that the truth will come out, which is why it’s great to have the book out now so people don’t just read the headlines but can read the actual chapter.
● Rebel Rising by Rebel Wilson is published by Harper Collins, price £25
‘All I’m doing is sharing my story’
As my little boy, Edward, clasped my hand tightly, I couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong. It was the Summer of 2018 and I was on maternity leave with my new baby, Edith and Edward, two, had started bumping into things.
We lived in an old farmhouse with thick door frames, and we’d moved some of the furniture, as Edith was crawling, so at first my hubby Shaune, 49, and I put it down to that.
Tests showed Edward needed glasses but, within a couple of months, he was struggling to walk without holding on to something.
Then his nursery called me and said he’d stopped being able to hold a cup under the running water to get a drink. He was going backwards and barely sleeping.
‘It’s a brain tumour,’ I told Shaune.
It was simply a mother’s instinct, even though Edward didn’t have the classic signs such as vomiting and sleeping a lot – which I found on Google – he wobbled so much. The doctor dismissed the idea.
Eventually, in September, doctors agreed to put him on the list for an MRI scan but it would be after Christmas. They said if it was a tumour he’d be a lot more poorly. I was desperate. I just knew this couldn’t wait. He was getting worse.
By then, I was back at work helping people with alcohol and substance abuse issues, so I applied for a credit card to pay for a private scan.
In the meantime, Edward had an eye check. The moment the optometrist looked in his eyes, he saw swelling behind them.
Edward had the MRI on the NHS at our local hospital the next day. The doctors gave us an immediate verdict: ‘ We’ve found a blockage,’ they told us.
Suddenly, Edward was in an ambulance being blue-lighted to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, an hour away from our home in Flintshire, North Wales.
We asked what the ‘blockage’ was. They explained he had a tumour which was causing a build-up of fluid in his brain – hydrocephalus. His organs were starting to shut down. It was terrifying.
They operated the next morning, and there were lots of risks. Shaune and I sat in the hospital for nine long hours, waiting for news. My mum and dad were on a cruise of a lifetime and desperate to fly home. We didn’t know what the tumour was, whether it was malignant or benign, and what would happen to Edward.
At last, the doctors came to
tell us that Edward had made it through the surgery. But he had an aggressive malignant tumour – a medulloblastoma – and they’d removed 95 per cent of it. The rest was too close to his brainstem.
Edward took a while to come round and then didn’t speak for five or six days. He had to start chemo, and it was brutal. His hydrocephalus returned and he had emergency surgery to fit him with a shunt – a tube and valve to divert fluid from his brain into his abdomen. He was fed through a tube into his stomach.
That Christmas, Edward was in a dark place. He developed multiple infections in his feeding tube and his shunt, needed multiple surgeries, and there weren’t enough veins for him to have his antibiotics. He barely even opened his eyes. His heart rate went up to nearly 200 beats a minute.
I couldn’t bear the thought that, after all he’d been through, it would be an infection that killed him. This was after one round of chemo and he had another five to go.
Edward was so close to death but we still had to be there for our other children. I remember our eldest, Dylan, then five was in his nativity play and we left Edward to be there - it was a very strange time.
But then, days before Christmas, Edward started to respond to the antibiotics! He was awake and alert. Hope flooded through me.
On Christmas Eve, Shaune stayed in hospital with him overnight. I went in with Edith and Dylan, plus my parents, and we had our Christmas Day there. We made it lovely.
For the next eight months, through five more rounds of chemo, Edward came home only a handful of times. His final round was high-dose and he needed a stem cell transplant. Only Shaune or I were allowed in the room . It was tough for his siblings, as they couldn’t come to see him but a charity gave them all iPads so they could see each other online.
Edward slept most of the time. I was in the room cuddling him and watching the TV when the 2019 London Marathon came on.
It was so inspiring and, as I gazed down at my sick little boy, I vowed to myself: ‘If we can get through this, then one day I’ll run it to give something back.’ I’d never run in my life! Edward got through the chemo, and during Covid we shielded, teaching him to stand, walk and swallow again. It was like having a newborn – he even had to learn how to fall asleep. Through it all, I never forgot my vow.
Finally, last May, I got a place to run the marathon for Brain Tumour Research charity in 2024! I paid my registration fee and booked my hotel to stop me backing out.
I joined a bootcamp and the charity paired me with a volunteer coach. I signed up for some 5k runs over the summer, then 10k, and stepped up to a half-marathon in November. I’m not a runner, I don’t enjoy it but I’m doing it. We desperately need more research into brain tumours. Edward had a 50:50 chance of survival, even with all the gruelling treatment. Some families face even worse odds.
Shaune is coming to London while my parents look after the kids – Dylan, now 10, and Edith, six. They’re going to try to spot me on TV! I just want to get to the finish before the street lights come on.
I’m 46 and Edward is now eight. He knows all about his brain tumour and his shunt. We want him to totally own what happened. His torso is covered in scars but he knows what each of them are for. He can walk but gets tired easily so we take a pushchair for days out. His balance isn’t great – but he’s learning to swim, he’s here, he copes and he’s happy, and that’s good enough for me! I’m so proud of him, and of Shaune and my kids, as we embrace our new normal, and they’ll be on my mind every step of the way.
EDWARD HAD STARTED CHEMO, AND IT WAS BRUTAL
● Catherine is running for braintumourresearch.org and you can donate at justgiving. com/fundraising/CatherineKelly31