Apple Cider Vinegar is about to become one of Netflix’s best limited TV series as it dives into the lies of Australian health and wellness influencer Belle Gibson.
The show is inspired by a true story that rocked Australia, which it was ultimately based on a lie.
Alycia Debnam-Carey and Aishe Dee will star in Apple Cider Vinegar. (Credit: Netflix)
Apple Cider Vinegar was created by award-winning writer Samantha Strauss, best known for her work on Nine Perfect Strangers, and is directed by Jeffery Walker, known for his work on Teresa Palmer’s The Clearing, The Artful Dodger and Modern Family.
“Samantha Strauss has created a series that is searing in its comment but entertaining at its very core. It’s complex, it’s got bounce and it’s got bite, and we love it,” Executive Producers Liz Watts and Louise Gough said.
Below, TV WEEK has answered all your burning questions about Apple Cider Vinegar.
What is the plot for Apple Cider Vinegar?
The series follows two young women, Belle and Milla, who are determined to cure their life-threatening illnesses through heath and wellness. In the new age of social media, the girls share their journey to Instagram and influence a global community along the way.
But how much of this is true? None, it is all a scam.
Belle Gibson sold a lie to the entire world when she claimed her special diet “cured” her from cancer. The wellness influence ultimately turned into a social pariah when the truth was revealed.
Speaking to TV WEEK at the Apple Cider Vinegar red carpet, Samanatha revealed why it was so important to incorporate a character who was hurt by Belle’s lies along the way.
“Belle’s Rise and Fall Grifter story is diabolical and it’s a pretty fascinating story… but 6 hours of Belle? I’m not sure,” she said. “To me, it felt like ethically you could only tell her story if you also told the story of the people she could have hurt – and did hurt along the way. So centring on a person like Lucy, who is a follower of Belle felt really important.”
While the series will discuss some heavy topics, Kaitlyn Dever assured TV WEEK “the show toes a very fine line between drama and comedy.”
“I hope that people have a good laugh and a good cry,” she said. “There are so many twists and turns that the show takes, and I think that ultimately the show touches on the deep confusion surrounding the wellness world and the medical world.”
But if you’re the type of person to read the book before watching the series, Netflix has based the series off the book The Woman Who Fooled The World by Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano.
Who is the cast for Apple Cider Vinegar?
The cast includes Alycia Debnam-Carey (The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart and Fear the Walking Dead); Aishe Dee (The Bold Type); Kaitlyn Dever (Dopesick); TV WEEK Gold Logie nominee Mark Coles Smith (Mystery Road: Origin); Ashley Zukerman (Succession); and Tilda Cobham-Hervey (The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart).
Alycia, who is taking on the role of Milla – Belle’s wellness competitor – revealed her character won’t be portrayed as a “victim.”
“It’s a very interesting story, it’s very complex. She makes some very misguided choices but she really believes it wholeheartedly,” she told TV WEEK. “I think it’s fascinating to see her go toe-to-toe in the wellness health space with someone who is lying about cancer and is wanting to claim and dominate that space. It’s such a fascinating, complex nuance story and so I was very intrigued by that psychological aspect of the character.
“But I also love that we were showing a character that wasn’t a victim in that way.”
When does Apple Cider Vinegar release?
Apple Cider Vinegar will released on Netflix on February 6, 2025, in Australia.
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