Yes, Rebel Wilson Lied, But Who Cares?
Rebel Wilson lied about a few things. The Pitch Perfect 2 actress lied about her age, her name, and where she grew up. Is that so bad? The Guardian‘s Van Badham points out that Rebel is paid to lie about who she is all the time!
Rebel Wilson is 35, so what? She’s paid to pretend to be someone else | Van Badham http://t.co/368z1IHxGU — The Guardian (@guardian) May 20, 2015
Van Badham had some harsh things to say about showbiz.
“In an industry where actors are actually employed to pretend to be other people, it is bizarre to consider the strange tone of betrayal that accompanies much of the reporting about Wilson.”
Other tweeters agreed, with some pointing out that Rebel is paid to act, not to be herself, and one person describing the acting world as “smoke and mirrors.”
Thanks @vanbadham for reminding everyone that changing your name & age is the norm in the world of smoke & mirrors. http://t.co/t8gPGvltcN — Louise Pascale (@loupascale) May 20, 2015
The truth is, it’s an industry that requires people to look younger, prettier, handsomer, fitter, more interesting, and just all round better than they might actually be. We like our stars to be special, so they are special.
Wilson is 35, not 29. Well, good for Rebel, passing for six years younger all this time. It’s not as if no one else in Hollywood ever fudged their age. The bigger surprise would be if anyone is telling the truth. Even JLo has been outed for a few age related fibs, as have Nicki Minaj and Jessica Chastain. Sandra Bullock decided it wasn’t worth it to tell the truth about her age.
“After a while, you have no idea how old you are because you’ve lied so many times… I always said I would never lie, but one time, when I didn’t it worked against me. So I figure you just keep them guessing.”
Interesting, isn’t it, that the names coming up in the list of age-fudgers are all women. Seems like people don’t really care how old the male stars are. Old is still crushable for men!
So Rebel isn’t 29, and her name isn’t actually Rebel. But neither was Marilyn Monroe’s name actually Marilyn, and Natalia Zacharenko made a great choice of name when she became Natalie Wood. Rebel was born Melanie Elizabeth, and only later in life changed her last name to Wilson.
Looks like Rebel did tell the truth about her siblings’ odd names. Her brother is Ryot and her two sisters are called Liberty and Annachi. Why not pretend to be named “Rebel?” It fits right in with the family style, and also fits Rebel the rebel better than Melanie would.
A Rebel by any other name — But really, fans love Rebel whether she’s a 100-year-old mermaid, a 29-year-old actress, or a 35-year-old rebel!
I love this woman. #MyHero https://t.co/8VHxOiTvbV — Jen?Knee (@IMterriblyvexed) May 20, 2015
[Image via the Guardian]
