Netflix’s latest series Apple Cider Vinegar is inspired by the true story of Belle Gibson — the infamous woman who faked a cancer diagnosis to create a wellness empire. But Belle’s story isn’t the only one to be featured in the series. It also includes other characters — some fictionalised, some created and some simply depicted — to help show her devastating impact and the magnitude of the natural wellness warrior messaging of the early 2010s.
According to Samantha Strauss — the creator, writer, director and showrunner behind the series — the show doesn’t just draw inspiration from Belle’s story, but other real people too.
“The series draws inspiration from a number of real people, as well as the book by Nick Toscano and Beau Donnelly,” Samantha told PEDESTRIAN.TV.
So, with that said, here are the true stories of the other characters who likely inspired plotlines in Apple Cider Vinegar.
Is Milla Blake based on a real person?
Milla Blake, played by Alicia Debnam-Carey in Apple Cider Vinegar, might not be directly depicting a real person but she certainly has a lot of similarities with a woman named Jessica Ainscough.
Jessica was an Australian wellness blogger in the early 2010s. She was an online editor for teen magazine Dolly but in 2008, when she was just 23 years old, Jessica was diagnosed with epitheliod sarcoma — an incredibly rare, soft-tissue cancer which developed in her arm.
At first, she tried chemotherapy but when it stopped working, doctors told her that her best form of treatment for survival would be to have her arm amputated at the shoulder. Instead of pursuing the doctor’s advice, Jessica attempted to cure her cancer by following alternative therapies such as Gerson Therapy.
“I didn’t chop off my arm. I didn’t go into aggressive, full-body chemotherapy. I didn’t accept that my doctor’s ‘solution’ was the only course of action,” she said on her blog, Wellness Warrior.
“I decided that I would do everything in my power to thrive in life, in spite of the looming expiration date I’d been given. I learned how to treat myself with absolute kindness and self-respect. I radicalised my diet. I systematically detoxified my body — and mind.”
Gerson therapy is an unproven, alternative method in which cancer is treated with multiple coffee enemas, supplements juices and an organic vegetarian diet. It is not proven or supported by Australian medical bodies.
Jessica shared her journey online where she found like-minded people, and others suffering from cancer who wanted to find natural treatment alternatives. She became known as a “wellness warrior”.
In a further tragic turn of events, Jessica’s mother Sharyn was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012. She also decided to opt for Gerson therapy and sadly passed away in 2013.
Following her mother’s death, Jessica shared with her loyal audience that she’d become unwell after being “totally stable” for most of her seven years battling cancer.
“For the first time in my almost seven-year journey with cancer, this year I’ve been really unwell,” Ainscough wrote, per The Guardian.
“I’ve lived with cancer since 2008 and for most of those years, my condition was totally stable. When my mum became really ill, my cancer started to become aggressive again. After she died, things really started flaring up.
“For the past few months, I’ve been pretty much bedridden.”
As her own cancer worsened, Jessica turned to radiation therapy alongside her natural remedies. Tragically, she passed away in 2015.
Clearly, there are countless similarities between the character of Milla Blake and Jessica Ainscough’s story. From doctors wanting to amputate her arm, Gerson therapy, her juice line and her mother tragically passing away from cancer, the likeness between the figures is clear.
Despite the clear similarities, Samantha says that Milla’s characterisation is predominantly fictional.
“Milla’s an amalgamation of a few wellness influencers but, mostly, she’s someone we crafted in our writer’s room and her own fictional character,” Samantha explained.
“We felt Belle’s longing to become Milla’s friend was an interesting way to unpack the love she craved and said something about parasocial ‘online’ friendships. It was always very important to us to have young women at the centre of this story and we loved the idea of exploring the pressure Milla put on herself to be perfect — to be a ‘good girl’ — and how that led her to such a dark place.
“I could say so much about Milla’s character — I love her and find her so relatable and frustrating. Alycia [Debnam-Carey] brought her to life in such a compelling, nuanced way.”
Who is Chanelle based on?
In Apple Cider Vinegar, one of the first characters to call out Belle’s lies is Chanelle, played by Aisha Dee. She’s introduced as a childhood friend of Milla’s who Belle eventually loops into her circle when she recognises Chanelle’s smarts and value to her image.
In real life, a woman named Chanelle McAuliffe met Belle when she was assigned an interview with her during an internship. In a documentary about Belle’s unbelievable story named Instagram’s Worst Con Artist, Chanelle explained how she became wrapped up in Belle’s story and how it all came apart.
“We were in similar circles of friends and acquaintances, and a friendship naturally formed,” Chanelle said in the documentary.
However, just like in the series, Chanelle noticed some things about Belle and her medical claims that didn’t sit right with her. Her doubts culminated during a birthday party for Belle’s son.
“The party was wrapping up. People were about to leave, and Belle just fell to the ground flat and started convulsing. There was saliva coming out of her mouth. She was having a seizure,” Chanelle recalled.
“I said we need to call an ambulance, but as soon as I said that Belle came out of the seizure and said: ‘No, I don’t want western medicine involved’ because she was healing in herself naturally.”
She remembered feeling confused and felt that something wasn’t right.
“When I left the party, I felt sick to my stomach about what I had just seen,” Chanelle admitted.
“This was the point where red flags really started to pop up for me. I was feeling really confused… in my gut, something didn’t feel right.”
Chanelle had also struggled to comprehend how Belle was going through cancer treatment and advocating for a clean lifestyle whilst still going out drinking. Eventually, Chanelle confronted Belle but she couldn’t provide any proof that she was truly sick.
According to Chanelle, she gave Belle the opportunity to come clean at the launch of her Whole Pantry cookbook. When she refused, Chanelle went to a journalist, a lawyer and the police.
“At this point, I was feeling like I had exhausted a lot of options… I had gone to so many different avenues to try and stop her, and people won’t believe me,” she explained.
“Finally, a journalist from The Age phoned me. I began telling him everything I knew, the little details that didn’t add up.”
Eventually, Chanelle’s story helped to inform the initial reports, along with Beau Donnelly and Nick Toscano’s book The Woman Who Fooled The World.
Who is Clive Rothwell?
In Apple Cider Vinegar, Belle has a long-term partner named Clive Rothwell (played by Ashley Zukerman) who becomes a stepfather figure to her son. While not a whole lot is known about Clive, he is a real person who has been linked to the fraudster since 2015.
Their relationship was recognised legally during a court appearance in 2019 when Belle was asked about Clive in court. According to reports by news.com.au, Clive had been rumoured to be bankrolling Belle since her downfall. However, in court, she refuted claims they were engaged, and said they were “just friends”.
She also claimed to not know what Clive did for work. “No. That’s not my business,” she reportedly said.
Well, there you have it. You can now binge-watch Apple Cider Vinegar on Netflix.
Or, in the meantime, check out the time we played Two Truths and A Lie with the cast. After all, it’s a whole show about lies, right?
You can watch the hilarious vid below.
The post Belle Gibson Drama Apple Cider Vinegar Is Based On These Real-Life People appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
