The U.K. edition of Rebel Wilson’s new memoir, titled ‘For Real: The Story of Rebel Wilson,’ will feature redacted passages pertaining to her past on-set experiences with Sacha Baron Cohen. The actress has previously stated that Chapter 23 of the memoir, titled ‘Sacha Baron Cohen and other Assholes,’ recounts her time filming the 2016 comedy ‘Grimsby’ alongside Baron Cohen. Wilson had earlier alleged that an unnamed actor in the book had hired a crisis PR manager and lawyers to threaten her over the chapter’s contents. While Chapter 23 remains intact in the U.S. version of the memoir, which was released on April 2, publisher HarperCollins has issued a statement explaining the redactions in the U.K. edition. “We are publishing every page, but for legal reasons, in the U.K. edition, we are redacting most of one page with some other small redactions and an explanatory note. Those sections are a very small part of a much bigger story,” the statement reads. Following the announcement of the redactions, a spokesperson for Baron Cohen released a statement saying, “Harper Collins did not fact check this chapter in the book prior to publication and took the sensible but terribly belated step of deleting Rebel Wilson’s defamatory claims once presented with evidence that they were false.” The statement further notes that “printing falsehoods is against the law in the U.K. and Australia” and that the redactions are not a “peculiarity,” but rather a legal principle that has been in place for centuries. Baron Cohen’s spokesperson maintains that Wilson’s claims are demonstrably false and were made in an attempt to boost book sales. Wilson’s representative has not yet responded to requests for comment. Last month, Baron Cohen’s spokesperson denied any allegations of on-set turmoil, citing “extensive detailed evidence, including contemporaneous documents, film footage and eyewitness accounts” that contradict Wilson’s claims. Despite these denials, Wilson has hinted at friction and disagreements during the filming of ‘Grimsby.’ In a 2014 interview on the radio show ‘Kyle and Jackie O,’ she recounted Baron Cohen’s repeated requests for her to appear nude in scenes, to which she refused. Wilson stated that she considered contacting their shared agent to express her discomfort with Baron Cohen’s behavior. ‘For Real: The Story of Rebel Wilson’ is set to be released in the U.K. on Thursday.
Rebel Wilson’s Memoir Redacted in UK Over Legal Concerns
