Rebel Wilson

**Rebel Wilson** portrayed Holly Freimont in *The Guardians*, *Guardians: Extinction* and *Guardians: The Final Stand*.

## Life & Career

Wilson was born on 2 March 1980 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Her mother is a professional dog handler. Wilson grew up in the suburbs of Kenthurst, Parramatta and Castle Hill. She attended Tara Anglican School for Girls. She completed her Higher School Certificate in 1997, including second place in the state in Food Technology.

Wilson has three siblings: sisters Liberty and Annaleise (who uses the name "Annachi") and a brother, who uses the name "Ryot". Liberty and Ryot appeared on the first season of *The Amazing Race Australia* in 2011, where they were the first team eliminated. Wilson has stated that her great-aunt was Lillian Bounds, who was married to Walt Disney until his death in 1966. Despite Wilson standing by this belief in court, it continues to be disputed by genealogist Dale Sheldon.

Wilson's first career choice was mathematics. She told *The Sydney Morning Herald*, "I was very academic at high school and was always good with numbers." She attended the University of New South Wales, graduating in 2009 with Bachelor of Arts (Theatre and Performance Studies) and Bachelor of Laws degrees. A former Rotary International youth ambassador for Australia, she was based in South Africa for one year, where she contracted malaria. She has spoken of malaria-induced hallucinations, where she saw herself as an actress who had won an Oscar, convincing her to pursue an acting career.

Wilson studied at the Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP). In 2003 she moved to New York after winning the ATYP International scholarship, which was funded by Nicole Kidman. While she was in New York, Wilson trained with The Second City. She appeared with the Sydney Theatre Company and performed at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. She first came to the public's attention in 2002 with her stage musical *The Westie Monologues*, which she wrote, starred in and produced in Sydney. Her follow-up stage productions, which she wrote, produced and starred in include *Spunks* and *Confessions of an Exchange Student*.

In Australia, Wilson is most known for her roles as Toula on the SBS comedy series *Pizza* and as various characters including Lucy, Fat Mandi and Karla Bangs on the sketch comedy series *The Wedge*. She played an *Australian Idol* mad schoolgirl in a series of Telstra advertisements shown during *Australian Idol* from 2004 to 2005. She also had roles in the feature films *Fat Pizza* and *Ghost Rider*.

In 2008, Wilson created, wrote, produced and starred in the musical comedy series *Bogan Pride* on SBS One and also starred in the improvisational Nine Network series *Monster House*. In 2009 Wilson won the Tropfest Best Actress award for her role in the film *Bargain*. She has made appearances on the improvisational comedy show *Thank God You're Here* and the comedy game show *Talkin' 'Bout Your Generation*. She performed stand-up on the television special *The Breast Darn Show In Town* and guest starred in the Seven Network drama *City Homicide* and performed improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles.

After moving to the United States, Wilson signed to talent and literary agents William Morris Endeavor. Wilson's next film role came in the Judd Apatow film, *Bridesmaids*, in which she played Brynn, the sister of Matt Lucas' character. The role was written especially for her. Wilson then appeared in the CBS sitcom *Rules of Engagement* and on the Comedy Central series, *Workaholics*. She co-hosted the 2010 ARIA Music Awards and performed at the inaugural *Variety*’s Power of Comedy event in Los Angeles with Lucas and Russell Brand. In early 2011, Wilson filmed *A Few Best Men* at Fox Studios Australia. She also filmed a role in *Small Apartments*. Wilson was named one of *Variety* magazine's "Top Ten Comics to Watch for 2011". In 2012, Wilson had a role in the ensemble comedy *What to Expect When You're Expecting*, as Janice, and co-starred in the indie film *Struck By Lightning*.

On 19 August 2011, Borys Kit of *The Hollywood Reporter* reported that Wilson had replaced Casey Wilson in *Bachelorette*. In 2012, Wilson voiced a character in *Ice Age: Continental Drift* and played Fat Amy in *Pitch Perfect*. For the latter role, she received critical acclaim and earned various award nominations, including Best Supporting Actress from the San Diego Film Critics Society and Best Actress in a Comedy from the Broadcast Film Critics Association. She won the MTV Movie Award for Best Actor in a Movie and shared the Best Musical Moment award with her *Pitch Perfect* co-stars. Wilson was also nominated for MTV Movie Award for Best Performance. Wilson later won the Choice Movie Actress: Comedy award for *Pitch Perfect* at the 2013 Teen Choice Awards. She had also been nominated for Choice Comedian at the 2013 Teen Choice Awards.

In January 2012, Michael Ausiello of TVLine announced that Wilson would be writing and starring in *Super Fun Night*, a comedy that follows three friends on a quest to have fun every Friday night. The pilot was picked up by CBS and Conan O'Brien became one of the executive producers. The pilot was later turned down by CBS, but the ABC network picked up the project. A series was ordered and the show began broadcasting on 2 October 2013. The series was cancelled after one season. Wilson played Robin Peck in Michael Bay's *Pain & Gain* (2013). She hosted the 2013 MTV Movie Awards on 14 April 2013.

In March 2014, the American satellite television network Dish Network launched a marketing campaign for its Hopper DVR featuring Wilson as the voice of the eponymous computer animated kangaroo. Wilson reprised her role in the sequels *Pitch Perfect 2* (2015) and *Pitch Perfect 3* (2017). She also made a cameo in the television comedy *Pompidou*. Wilson joined the voice cast for *Kung Fu Panda 3*; however, in September 2015, she was replaced with Kate Hudson. Wilson next appeared in the ensemble comedy *How to Be Single*, released in February 2016. Nigel M Smith of *The Guardian* wrote "Wilson is the standout, nailing every pratfall she's dealt, but *How to Be Single* doesn't make strong use of her character". Wilson also appeared in the action comedy *Grimsby*. On 14 February 2016, Wilson presented the nominations for the Best Supporting Actor category at the 69th British Academy Film Awards. Wilson is one of sixty celebrities who make a cameo in *Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie*.

Wilson appeared as Ursula, the sea witch, in an all-star concert version of *The Little Mermaid* at the Hollywood Bowl on 3 June, 4 June, and 6 June 2016. She made her West End debut in the musical *Guys and Dolls* in the role of Miss Adelaide from 28 June to 21 August 2016. She received positive reviews. Wilson played LeFou in a production of *Beauty and the Beast: Live in Concert* at the Hollywood Bowl on 25–26 May 2018. She also appeared on the cover of *Vogue Australia* for the first time.

Wilson has thus far starred in two 2019 comedies. The first, *Isn't It Romantic*, was released in February, and is about a woman (Wilson) who wakes up in a literal romantic comedy, despite the character's hate for the genre; the film is Wilson's first solo lead role. In May, Wilson starred alongside Anne Hathaway in *The Hustle*, a female-centred remake of the 1988 comedy film *Dirty Rotten Scoundrels*. Wilson also co-produced the latter film.