Apple Cider Vinegar is the latest drama to take over Netflix and get the internet talking. The show follows a woman called Belle Gibson (played by Kaitlyn Dever) an influencer who falsely claimed to have cured herself of cancer using alternative therapies. But all of this turns out to be a lie, when it's revealed that Belle never had cancer in the first place - and duped millions into believing her story.
It might sound unbelievable, but the show is actually a dramatised retelling of the real story of Belle Gibson. And as is the case with trending shows, old clips of Belle Gibsonare beginning to resurface on social media as people grow curious about the real women behind the drama.
One viral clip doing the rounds on social media shows Belle seeming to lie about her age. The video, shared by 60 Minutes Australia on TikTok, shows an interviewer asking Belle how old she is. Belle response 'I've always been raised...umm... as being currently a 26-year-old.' When the interviewer asks her again how old she is, Belle gives a similarly strange answer, saying 'Well I live knowing as I've always known that I would be 26.' When the interviewer states it is a 'simple question' and asks her again, Belle says 'I believe that I'm 26. I have two birth certificates and I've had my name changed four times. The identity crisis there is big. But that was my normal when I was growing up, Tara' adding 'it's not something I've ever understood or had answers around.' The clip ends with the interviewer saying that currently, according to documents Belle used to sign financial papers, she is 23. Belle says 'Correct.'
The video has amassed over 560k likes and 12k comments. Lots of people who aren't familiar with the story are curious to know more. 'What is happening???' wrote one user. Another commented 'wait what?! why is she so confused tho? What's going on?' Others referred to Apple Cider Vinegar, with one writing 'oh wow I just watch this on Netflix, crazy.'
Speculation around Belle's story started circulating in 2015, after an Australian publication revealed that she had been falsely claiming to followers that she was donating a portion of her book and app sales to charity. Belle finally told the truth about her story in an interview with Australian Women's Weekly.
'None of it's true,' she said. 'I don't want forgiveness," she said, adding that she was telling the truth because it was the "responsible thing to do.' In the interview, Belle referenced that she had a 'troubled' childhood. 'When I started school, my mum went, "My daughter is grown up now,"' she said. 'All of a sudden, I was walking to school on my own, making school lunches and cleaning the house every day.It was my responsibility to do grocery shopping, do the washing, arrange medical appointments and pick up my brother. I didn’t have toys.” She added, 'I am still jumping between what I think I know and what is reality. I have lived it and I'm not really there yet.'
At the time, Belle's mother, Natalie Dal-Bello (formerly Gibson), responded to these claims in an interview with Woman's Day. 'What a lot of rubbish,' she said, saying the only truth to the story was her MS. 'Her brother is not autistic and she’s barely done a minute’s housework in her life,” she said. I’ve practically worked myself into an early grave to give that girl everything she wanted in life.'