Rebel Wilson has said that she felt like “something to be laughed at and degraded” on set of The Brothers Grimsby because of her size.
The Australian actor recently opened up about her experience of working with Sacha Baron Cohen on the 2016 comedy, in which she played the actor’s girlfriend.
In an extract from her new memoir Rebel Rising, she alleged that the actor pressured her into filming inappropriate scenes, which he strongly denies.
Elaborating on her experience making the film in a new interview with The Sunday Times, Wilson said: “It’s one thing for someone who is fat to exploit their size for comedy, but it’s another for somebody else to humiliate you.”
She added that it “turned out to be the worst professional experience of my career”.
Her comments come after she detailed her experience on the film in her new memoir, writing (via People): “It felt like every time I’d speak to SBC, he’d mention that he wanted me to go naked in a future scene. I was like, ‘Ha, I don’t do nudity, Sacha.’”
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The Pitch Perfect star described one particular alleged incident on set: “SBC summons me via a production assistant saying that I’m needed to film an additional scene. ‘Okay, well, we’re gonna film this extra scene,’ SBC says. Then he pulls his pants down … SBC says very matter-of-factly: ‘Okay, now I want you to stick your finger up my ass.’ And I’m like, ‘What?? … No!!’ …”
She continued: “I was now scared. I wanted to get out of there, so I finally compromised: I slapped him on the ass and improvised a few lines as the character.”
In her interview with The Times, Wilson said that she felt her costumes were chosen so viewers could “see all the cellulite on my thighs and a top to show the fattest part of my arm”.
She felt “like I was something to be laughed at and degraded because of my size”.
The Hustle actor continued that she felt “disrespected on set”, but didn’t speak out for fear she’d be labelled a “troublemaker”. She added that it “took months to recover” and the experience left her “shaken”.
“I’m sharing my story now because the more women talk about things like this, hopefully the less it happens. And hopefully fewer women have to work harder just to respect themselves,” she said.
Baron Cohen has denied the previous accusations. A statement by his representatives read: “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 those present before, during and after the production of The Brothers Grimsby.”
His representatives also provided anonymous statements in support of his response from nine people involved in the film, five of whom claim they witnessed the incident and dispute Wilson’s accusations.
NME has reached out to Baron Cohen’s reps for comment regarding the latest complaints from Wilson.
In response to the accusations, a producer for the film who preferred to be kept anonymous told NME: “In my capacity as a writer and producer, I was present with Sacha and Rebel on pretty much a daily basis from the moment she was engaged as an actor to the moment the movie wrapped and she was no longer involved. Throughout this entire period, she was treated with the utmost respect and empowerment and was welcomed as a collaborator in all creative areas; the script, costume, hair, makeup – everything that involved her.”
“One should note that neither of their characters – Nobby or Dawn – were supposed to look conventionally attractive, that was the point and was always in the script that Rebel read and approved prior to signing up for the part. She also enthusiastically contributed to making jokes to that end, including about Dawn’s body type. If she’d ever felt uncomfortable or humiliated – and I was never aware that she was at any time – those would have been conversations the director, the costume designer, producers and Sacha would have been open to at the time. Never would Sacha want to humiliate his co-star and colleague. In 25 years of working together, he has never done that to a fellow actor.”