Rebel Wilson has broken her silence on being forced to reveal a same-sex relationship before she was ready by a gossip columnist.
Speaking to The Australian on Thursday, Rebel Wilson spoke of the “grubby” episode, saying she and girlfriend Ramona Agruma were yet to tell some family members they were a couple.
Wilson announced her relationship with Agruma on Instagram in June, ahead of a planned story by the Sydney Morning Herald that was going to reveal the star’s relationship.
“I just thought it was kind of grubby behaviour,” Wilson said.
“Basically, with the situation where a journalist is threatening to out you, you’ve got to hurry, and some people we didn’t get a chance to tell before it came out publicly. And that’s not ideal.”
In a now deleted article, Andrew Hornery, the journalist from the Sydney Morning Herald who was going to break the story, said that he: “Erred on the side of caution and emailed Rebel Wilson’s representatives on Thursday morning, giving her two days to comment on her new relationship with another woman, LA designer Ramona Agruma, before publishing a single word.
“Big mistake. Wilson opted to gazump the story, posting about her new ‘Disney Princess’ on Instagram early yesterday, the same platform she had previously used to brag about her handsome ex-boyfriend, wealthy American beer baron Jacob Busch.”
The article was condemned internationally, drawing criticism from the New York Times, Whoopi Goldberg, George Takei and Ronan Keating.
“There are levels to telling people,” Wilson said. “You tell your close family and your friends and not everybody. Across our two families, not everybody is as accepting as what you’d hope for, and we were trying to be respectful to those people and tell them in our own way.”
Wilson said the event had been particularly difficult for Agruma. “It was just a hard few days, especially for my partner, who’s not used to being in the public eye and having to deal with stuff like that,” she said.
Wilson is to star in her first dramatic role, alongside Charlotte Gainsbourg and Meera Syal, in The Almond and the Seahorse which is expected to release in UK cinemas later this year.
