Rebel Wilson turned heads Saturday night at the red carpet premiere of her directorial debut The Deb at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The 44-year-old Australian actress, who is currently embroiled in a legal battle with the film’s producers, wore a strapless purple dress with a striking V-shaped detail at the bodice.
The form-fitting dress clung to her slim frame as she walked confidently and posed for the cameras.
Her icy blonde locks were parted in a side parting, with side bangs and a voluminous bun at the back of her head.
Despite being sued for defamation by Amanda Ghost, Gregor Cameron and Vince Holden, Wilson said People“The film will shine.”
Rebel Wilson turned heads Saturday night at the red carpet premiere of her directorial debut The Deb at the Toronto International Film Festival
The 44-year-old Australian actress wore a strapless purple dress with a statement V-shaped accessory attached to the bodice
Speaking to People ahead of Saturday’s premiere, Rebel admitted the legal situation is “not ideal.”
She noted, “There was clearly a struggle to get the film to run,” after accusing three producers of trying to prevent the film from screening at TIFF.
‘At the end of the day I’m so proud of the fact that [TIFF CEO] Cameron Bailey chose this to play at the festival. And the honor of being chosen for TIFF — and again, as a first-time female director — is just huge,” she added.
She said of the musical film, “The movie speaks for itself. It’s so good and so original and so unique and it’s just going to — the movie is going to shine.”
Wilson stars in the film, which is set in her native Australia and stars Natalie Abbott.
The story centers on Abbott, who plays a high school outsider who tries to reinvent herself at her town’s debutante ball, The Deb.
Wilson admitted that she originally intended to focus solely on directing the film, but ended up participating to secure financing.
She plays the role of Janette, a salon employee and mother of Annabelle, the town’s teenage bully. Annabelle is played by Stevie Jean.
The form-fitting dress clung to her slender frame as she confidently walked and posed for the cameras; pictured with eight-year-old Australian actress Scarlett Crabtree, who stars in The Deb
Her icy blonde locks were parted in a side parting, with side bangs and an updo with a voluminous bun at the back of her head
According to People, Natalie was very enthusiastic about Wilson’s direction, describing her as someone who had “a clear vision” but also “let the actors experiment.”
She said: ‘Technically everything was thought out, but when the scene is happening and you’re acting, I think there was a lot of freedom to play, and that’s really cool.’
Jean said: ‘There was a lot of improvisation, which was great, especially for the scenes with me and Rebel.
“It was a lot of back and forth moments. It was just so much fun.”
Wilson appears in the film, which is set in her native Australia and stars Natalie Abbott (right) and Stevie Jean (left)
The trio gathered for a group photo before entering Roy Thomson Hall
Before the premiere, Rebel told People, “The movie speaks for itself. It’s so good and so original and so unique and it just goes — the movie is going to shine.”
Wilson’s defamation lawsuit comes after she accused the trio of “bad behavior” in an Instagram video on July 10.
In August, the producers filed a complaint, to which Wilson responded with a fierce statement aimed at Len Blavatnik, the billionaire whose company AI Film financed the coming-of-age musical.
“Len Blavatnik please stop funding and protecting Amanda Ghost, Gregor Cameron and Vince Holden,” Wilson wrote in an Instagram post.
“All I’ve done is tell the truth about these absolute assholes. Now they’re filing a false libel lawsuit and spreading false articles to cause even more harm,” she continued.
The producers called Wilson a “malicious bully” in their defamation lawsuit.
