It appears Rebel Wilson‘s coming-out announcement last week wasn’t entirely up to her.
Over the weekend, Sydney Morning Herald columnist Andrew Hornery published a piece in which he detailed how he had asked Wilson’s representatives for comment on her new relationship with clothing designer Ramona Agruma. He said he gave them “two days to comment,” then bemoaned how Wilson “opted to gazump the story” by revealing the relationship herself on Instagram, which he called “underwhelming.”
Hornery’s story was met with outrage on social media, with many accusing the Herald and Hornery of pressuring the Pitch Perfect and Senior Year star, 42 to disclose her sexuality.
Herald editor Bevan Shields defended the paper’s handling of the situation in a column on Sunday, writing, “To say that the Herald ‘outed’ Wilson is wrong,” he wrote. “Like other mastheads do every day, we simply asked questions and as standard practice included a deadline for a response. I had made no decision about whether or what to publish, and the Herald’s decision about what to do would have been informed by any response Wilson supplied.”
Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Netflix Rebel Wilson comments on the situation involving an Australian gossip columnist attempting to out her relationship with Ramona Agruma.
Hornery’s original piece has since been taken down from the Sydney Morning Herald‘s website and the writer penned a new column issuing a public apology.
Wilson acknowledged the situation in a Twitter reply over the weekend. “Thanks for your comments,” she wrote, “it was a very hard situation but trying to handle it with grace.”
Thanks for your comments, it was a very hard situation but trying to handle it with grace ????
— Rebel Wilson (@RebelWilson) June 12, 2022
A representative for Wilson declined to comment.
In his apology, Hornery explains that he “learnt some new and difficult lessons.”
“I genuinely regret that Rebel has found this hard. That was never my intention. But I see she has handled it all with extraordinary grace,” he writes. “As a gay man I’m well aware of how deeply discrimination hurts. The last thing I would ever want to do is inflict that pain on someone else.”
Hornery further acknowledges that he and his editors “mishandled steps in our approach.” He adds, “My email was never intended to be a threat but to make it clear I was sufficiently confident with my information and to open a conversation. It is not the Herald‘s business to ‘out’ people and that is not what we set out to do. But I understand why my email has been seen as a threat. The framing of it was a mistake. The Herald and I will approach things differently from now on to make sure we always take into consideration the extra layer of complexities people face when it comes to their sexuality.”
After posting about Agruma on Instagram last Thursday, the actress spoke with PEOPLE about their relationship. “I think going through the process of finding more self-worth, I think that what you want in a partner is elevated and so it’s great to have someone who feels like an equal partner and be in a healthy relationship,” she said. “There were times — I’m not saying with all my exes, they’re great — but there were some times that I was probably putting up with that I shouldn’t have. So it feels different to be in a really healthy relationship.”
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