Rebel Wilson has shared a surprising story about her breakout role in Bridesmaids.
According to the actress, who played Brynn in the 2011 comedy, she had originally auditioned for the much larger part of Megan, which went to Melissa McCarthy.
Despite being a perfect fit for the character, Rebel believes that she lost out on the role because Melissa already had ‘friends’ involved in the film.
‘So I actually auditioned for the Melissa McCarthy role and they were always going to give it to Melissa because she was their friend,’ she said on stage at the London Palladium, according to The Mirror.
The movie was directed by Paul Feig, a friend of Melissa’s who has also directed her in The Heat, Spy and Ghostbusters.
Despite missing out on the sizeable part, Rebel scored the role of minor character Brynn, who was the sister of Gil, played by British comedian Matt Lucas.
Rebel Wilson has shared a surprising story about her breakout role in Bridesmaids; seen at the film’s premiere in 2011 in Westwood, California
According to the actress, who played Brynn in the 2011 comedy, she had originally auditioned for the much larger part of Megan, which went to Melissa McCarthy (pictured)
Rebel scored the role of minor character Brynn, who was the sister of Gil, played by British comedian Matt Lucas (pictured right)
And while she had limited screen time as Brynn, her short but memorable appearance was enough to launch Rebel’s Hollywood career.
The Australian star appeared in a handful of films and TV shows before joining the blockbuster Pitch Perfect franchise, playing Fat Amy in all three films.
Dailymail.com contacted Melissa McCarthy’s management for comment.
Rebel previously opened up about losing the role of Megan in Bridesmaids.
‘My character wasn’t supposed to exist in the movie. I’d auditioned for Melissa McCarthy’s character and was the second choice for that role,’ she told SiriusXM’s The Jess Cagle Show in 2021.
‘I guess they liked my audition and added me into the film, essentially, so there was never supposed to be two roommates, only one. So I just kind of added myself in in a way to the scenes.’
It comes after Rebel admitted that working with Sacha Baron Cohen was the ‘worst professional experience’ of her career, which made her feel ‘humiliated’.
The actress, 44, first opened up about her difficult experience with the British actor, 52, in her new memoir Rebel Rising, which has been released in UK with the allegations about Sascha – which he strongly denies – redacted.
Despite having limited screen time as Brynn, Rebel was so memorable that the role launched her entire career in Hollywood
The Australian star appeared in a handful of films and TV shows before joining the blockbuster Pitch Perfect franchise, playing Fat Amy in all three films
Rebel exposing all of her Hollywood secrets in her new memoir, Rebel Rising
Speaking about working with Sacha on the 2016 film Grimsby during An Evening With Rebel Wilson at the London Palladium on Monday evening, Rebel claimed if she was the person she is today she would have left the project.
Fearne Cotton, who hosted the evening with Rebel, touched on the claims she has made about Sacha and asked her: ‘Have you healed from it and mentally recovered?’
Rebel explained: ‘I mean it was over 10 years ago so I have moved on from it. But it was a bad experience and I felt humiliated and I had a bit of shame surrounding it because I should have left.’
The Australian star said that if she was as strong as she is today, she would have left the project, but went on to explain why she didn’t.
It comes after Rebel admitted that working with Sacha Baron Cohen was the ‘worst professional experience’ of her career , which made her feel ‘humiliated’
Rebel said: ‘I would have left I was the person I am today. But he was a bigger star and we had the same agent so there was a conflict of interest.
‘I felt like I had to finish the job and that was what was professional but if I was the person I am today I would have left.’
Revealing why she shared her experience in her memoir, she said: ‘I wanted to write the story for if anyone is going through something like that to give them perspective on it if they are feeling shame. It released some of that shame by writing about it.’
The book was published in the US earlier this month, and features a chapter titled Sacha Baron Cohen And Other A**holes, where Rebel makes claims about Sacha’s behaviour during the filming of Grimsby, which he has strongly denied.
