Netflix’s newest hit series released today - and it is based on a bonkers true story.
The show follows the story of Belle Gibson, an Australian health and wellness influencer who promoted diets that she claimed had helped her overcome her terminal cancer diagnosis.
The horrible truth, however, was that she never had cancer and had lied, duping people out of over £200,000 in the process.
Gibson’s story, as detailed in the book, The Woman Who Fooled the World, has been translated to a limited series for Netflix called Apple Cider Vinegar, with Kaitlyn Dever starring in the show as Gibson.
Though the streamer have cautiously called it a ‘true-ish’ story, here's what happened to Gibson following the events of the show.
What happened after the events of the series?
The series ends by cutting off the traditional ‘where are they now’ card with Dever’s Gibson saying ‘you can google it’.
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In reality, the influencer was found guilty in court in 2017 of having been ‘misleading’ in her claims of curing cancer through natural remedies, Cosmopolitan reports - leading her to face more than $1 million in fines.
She also claimed to have sent money earned from her cookbook and app sales to charity, which was also discovered to have been false.
This led to her being issued a fine of $410,000 (£240,000).
Her home was raided by police to recoup the money owed, something which is reported to have happened twice, in 2019 and 2020, since the trial.
Where is she now?
Though she is not active on social media there are some hints that can be pieced together as to where she is now.
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Gibson spoke out in 2020 where she revealed she had been ‘adopted’ by Melbourne’s Ethiopian Oromo community, where she claimed to now go by the name Sabontu and spoke in Oromo.
When switching to English, she said: “My heart is deeply embedded in the Oromo people, I feel blessed to be adopted by you.”
However, members of the Oromo community spoke to ABC Australia after this, saying they had not been aware of her identity until news of a raid on her home had hit the press.
Dr Tarekegn Chimdi said to Women’s Weekly of Gibson: “She is exploiting the good heart of the people in our community.
“People are not questioning when people are approaching them [whether] this is a good person. They did not know what evil she was carrying.”
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As of 2021, the latest update on Gibson is that she had yet to pay the mountains of fines owed, and raids were occurring to seize belongings to pay these off.
Has she spoken out recently?
To be frank, not really.
Gibson’s social media has been non-existent in recent years, and The Daily Telegraph Australia reported that she had said she was ‘not interested in a chat’ when reached on the phone.
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When spoken to by Australian TV channel, A Current Affair, last year, she stated she was unable to afford to pay the fine and wasn't able to 'enter the workplace'.
A LinkedIn profile with details matching Gibson, however, is still up.
Under Gibson’s achievements? Winning Best App of 2013 for The Whole Pantry.
Apple Cider Vinegar is available to watch on Netflix now.
Topics: Netflix, Crime, Social Media, TV and Film, TV
Michael Slavin