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'When I went to America, I kind of just stopped saying my age': Rebel Wilson addresses claims she 'lied' about her real name and statistics to make it in Hollywood

By Jo Scrimshire For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 05:06 EST, 10 February 2016 | Updated: 05:29 EST, 10 February 2016

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She's one of Australia's most famous exports, having made the leap from local television to the bright lights of Hollywood.

But last year, Rebel Wilson said she fell victim to the 'tall poppy syndrome' when Woman's Day magazine reported her real name was Melanie Bownds and that she was actually 36 years old - not 29 as reported.

After shrugging off reports at the time on Twitter, the Pitch Perfect star will talk further on the subject on Wednesday's Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery, insisting she 'doesn't have skeletons in her closet'.

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Interview: Pitch Perfect star Rebel Wilson (right) is profiled by TV host Julia Zemiro, 48, (left) on Wednesday's episode of Home Delivery and explains she 'lied' about her name and age to pursue a career in Hollywood

On the ABC series - in which French-born TV host Julia, 48, interviews a comedian each week - Rebel speaks openly about the claims, which she initially branded as muckraking.

When quizzed by Julia about her old classmate's decision to talk to the magazine about her 'true' age, Rebel admits it 'was never really a secret'.

She continues: 'If I was guilty of something which, I mean, I don’t really have any skeletons in my closet — which is why it’s quite hard for people to write bad stuff about me.

Beaming: The Australian actress Rebel appears in good spirits while visiting her old haunts in Sydney for the show

'You know, I don’t have a drug addiction, or secret child. But I think, when I did go to America, I kind of just stopped saying my age.'

Rebel, originally from Sydney, continues: 'It's Hollywood, come on, people.

'The reality is, when you work in America, you have to show your passport and your visa for every single job, so it’s not like you can hide how old you are.'

The former Bogan Pride star also suggested light-heartedly that she was being ladylike by not telling her real age after moving to the States.

Response: Rebel first addressed the controversy last year on Twitter, writing: 'OMG I''m actually a 100 year old mermaid formerly known as "CC Chalice"...

Back to her roots: Rebel and Julia take a stroll through Sydney in a trailer for the show, which airs on Wednesday night. She will discuss her youth in Castle Hill and overcoming shyness, among other topics

She adds: 'So for the press to do a story that I was deliberately, you know, lying or whatever... No, I was just being a lady and not telling my age when I moved to America.

'And that’s not really a crime. Also, most actresses do that,' she concluded - with Julia adding, 'Most women do that.'

The conversation then strayed to the subject of Rebel's name, which was also scrutinised last year.

Theatrical: Rebel and Julia laugh together in her old school auditorium at the Tara Anglican School for Girls in North Parramatta, where the How To Be Single star first started performing in the mid-1990s

Jazz hands: From humble beginnings, Rebel has gone on to conquer Hollywood through her role as Tasmanian a capella hopeful Patricia 'Fat Amy' in comedy film Pitch Perfect and its sequel

In the original Woman's Day article, an ex-classmate claimed the How To Be Single star went by Melanie in her youth despite later claiming Rebel was her real name, and not a stage name.

She explains: 'I went under one of my middle names, Melanie. And my father’s surname.'

She also remarks that Rebel wasn't exactly 'the best name to have' while attending a 'Christian girls school', referring to her education at the Tara Anglican School for Girls in North Parramatta in the mid-1990s.

Success: Pitch Perfect, released in 2012, was a sleeper hit and eventually became the highest-grossing music comedy film of all time behind School Of Rock. Its sequel, Pitch Perfect 2, would outperform the original

Tonight's show will also touch upon Rebel's remarkable journey from Sydney's Castle Hill to the Hollywood Hills, as she and Julia visit her school and former haunts.

They also discuss how she overcame severe shyness before blossoming into a global superstar in the Pitch Perfect series.

Rebel Wilson appears on Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery tonight at 8pm on ABC.