UPDATE 7:44 A.M. PST: A rep for Sacha denies any wrongdoing to TMZ. They shared:
“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.”
Turned in to a he said, she said real fast! Thoughts??
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[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
Rebel Wilson is calling out Sacha Baron Cohen!
Earlier this month while preparing for her memoir Rebel Rising to come out, the Pitch Perfect actress revealed that she’ll discuss why she learned to have a strict “no a**holes” policy on set. Something she says she realized was so important after working with an unnamed “massive a**hole.” Reflecting on her early days in Hollywood, she said in an Instagram video at the time:
“People were like, ‘I have a no a**holes policy, meaning I don’t work with a**holes.’ I was like, ‘Oh yeah. I mean that sounds sensible, logical.’ Then it really sunk in what they were meaning by that: Older people in the industry.”
She noted that the unnamed movie star would be revealed in “Chapter 23” of her book and that she planned to share all the deets!
Related: Ned’s Declassified Stars Admit They ‘F**ked Up’ After Joking About Drake Bell
Well, that Hollywood actor clearly wasn’t happy with the news because Rebel returned to the ‘gram on Friday, sharing in her Story:
“I wrote about an a**hole in my book. Now, said a**hole is trying to threaten me. He’s hired a crisis PR manager and lawyers.”
She continued:
“He is trying to stop press coming out about my book. But the book WILL come out and you will all know the truth. Rebel xoxo.”
Jeez! Things escalated again on Monday when Rebel revealed just who that “a**hole” really is! Determined not to let anything stop her from telling her truth, the Senior Year star took to her IG Story to reveal the person she was talking about is… Sacha! She dished alongside a photo of a purple pen and notebook:
“I will not be bullied or silenced with high priced lawyer or PR crisis managers. The ‘a**hole’ that I am talking about in ONE CHAPTER of my book is Sasha Baron Cohen”
Whoa!
Look (below):
So far, the Borat alum hasn’t publicly commented. But the stars do have beef! Back in 2014, the actors worked on The Brothers Grimsby together. On the Kyle and Jackie O Show that same year, Rebel opened up about her allegedly horrible experience with him on set, sharing:
“Sacha is so outrageous. Every day he’s like, ‘Just go naked, it will be funny.’ And I’m, like, ‘No!’ Sacha and I have the same agent in America and I’m like, ‘Sacha, I’m going to call our agent Sharon and tell her how much you are harassing me.’”
She then alleged:
“He was like, ‘Rebel can you just stick your finger up my butt?’ And I went, ‘What do you mean Sacha? That’s not in the script.’ And he’s like, ‘Look, I’ll just pull down my pants, you just stick your finger up my butt, it’ll be a really funny bit.’”
Similarly, in November 2017 amid the Me Too Movement, the mother of one recalled a similar incident, though this time she neglected to name names. She wrote in a since-deleted X (Twitter) post:
“A male star, in a position of power asked me to go into a room with him and then asked me repeatedly to stick my finger up his ass. All whilst his male ‘friends’ tried to film the incident on their iPhones and laughed. I repeatedly said no and eventually got out of the room.”
Terrible!!
While the How To Be Single lead “immediately” called her agent to make a complaint to the film studio, she claimed she was “threatened by one of the star’s representatives to be nice and support the star.” Oof. So not okay! And, unfortunately, if the rumors are actually true, it seems like not much has changed…
Rebel Rising is set to release on April 2. Hopefully, it doesn’t get held up by any legal drama!! Thoughts? Are you shocked by this allegation? Sound OFF (below)!
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.
[Image via WENN/Avalon/MEGA]