Netflix‘s Apple Cider Vinegar serves as a fine reminder that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Developed by writer Samantha Strauss, the six-episode limited series unspools the unnerving tale of Belle Gibson (Kaitlyn Dever), an Australian influencer who cultivates a massive audience (and a budding media empire) after claiming that she recovered from a malignant brain tumor with nothing more than natural, alternative medicine, exercise, and a healthy diet. Sounds great, huh? Too bad it’s all a hoax.

Read on for the true story behind Apple Cider Vinegar and the scam that inspired it.

Is Apple Cider Vinegar based on a true story?

Yes, Apple Cider Vinegar is based on a true story, as Gibson was exposed in 2015. While developing the series, the creators partially drew from The Woman Who Fooled the World, a 2017 book by Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano, the Australian journalists who initially unraveled Gibson’s trail of fraud.

That said, Netflix and the showrunners put their own spin on the narrative for Apple Cider Vinegar.

What is Apple Cider Vinegar about?

Netflix’s series chronicles the rise and fall of Dever’s Belle, though it takes some liberties with the story by weaving in the fictional character of Milla Blake (Alycia Debnam-Carey), another wellness influencer. Milla also promotes her passion for food as treatment for her own life-threatening illness — the difference, however, is that Milla’s condition is actually real.

The series sets Belle’s rise against her relationship with Milla, which should surely raise some interesting questions about authenticity in pursuit of fame. It also appears to put a face to the cancer patients who found hope (and eventually betrayal) in Belle’s curated online deception.

Who is Belle Gibson?

In the early days of Instagram, Gibson found fame as a wellness influencer (her handle was @healing_belle) and as the developer of the popular app The Whole Pantry and its spinoff cookbook. She stood out from other wellness influencers by claiming to have overcome terminal cancer — and multiple other cancer pathologies — through natural medicine, exercise, and her diet, specifically lemons and quinoa tortillas.

Her introductory post on @healing_belle read, “I have been healing a severe and malignant brain cancer for the past few years with natural medicine, Gerson therapy and foods. It’s working for me and I am grateful to be there sharing this journey,” according to Australian Women’s Weekly. Her account is now deleted.

It’s a one-of-a-kind story, truly. Unfortunately, it wasn’t true. Still, it wasn’t those lies that destroyed her budding empire, but rather her claims to have donated tens of thousands of dollars to several charities.

After receiving a tip from a friend of Gibson’s, reporters from the Australian outlet The Age found her donations were fraudulent. They also spoke to friends of Gibson who claimed she was living “a five-star lifestyle,” complete with a luxury beachside apartment and designer clothing.

Gibson’s story quickly unraveled, and in 2015 she admitted to Australian Women’s Weekly that she had fabricated her health claims. “No … None of it’s true,” she said. “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.”

She wouldn’t, however, admit to lying. “I think my life has just got so many complexities around it and within it, that it’s just easier to assume [I’m lying],” she added. “If I don’t have an answer, then I will sort of theorize it myself and come up with one. I think that’s an easy thing to often revert to if you don’t know what the answer is.”

In 2017, the Federal Court of Australia deemed she had misled and deceived her followers. “Ms Gibson had no reasonable basis to believe she had cancer from the time she began making these claims in public to promote The Whole Pantry book and the apps in mid-2013,” said a judge. Later that year, the court ordered Gibson to pay $410,000 AUD.

Where is Belle Gibson now?

In the years since being exposed, Gibson claimed she couldn’t afford to pay the fines, telling Victoria’s Department of Justice in 2020 that she was drowning in around $170,000 of personal debt. This led to law enforcement officials raiding her home in 2020 and 2021 to recoup her unpaid fines.

In 2020, she surprised everyone when a video surfaced of Gibson in a headscarf saying she had been “adopted” by the Oromo Ethiopian community in Melbourne. But a leader disputed this, telling Australian Women’s Weekly that she was “exploiting the good heart of the people in our community.”

In 2021, the Weekly received this statement from Gibson: “I would like people to say, ‘Okay, she’s human. She’s obviously had a big life. She’s respectfully come to the table and said what she’s needed to say and now it’s time to grow and heal.” 

Who’s in the Apple Cider Vinegar cast?

Dever, who starred in Hulu’s Dopesick and will soon appear in The Last of Us season 2 on Max, plays Belle. Debnam-Carey (Fear the Walking Dead) stars opposite Dever as Milla Blake, another wellness influencer who is actually struggling with cancer. Aisha Dee (The Bold Type) rounds out the main cast as Chanelle, a friend of Belle’s who may be based on Chanelle McAuliffe, the woman who tipped off the press about Belle’s deception.

Other cast members include Tilda Cobham-Hervey (I Am Woman), Mark Coles Smith (Mystery Road: Origin), Ashley Zukerman (Succession), and Essie Davis (The Babadook).

Where can I watch Apple Cider Vinegar?

All six episodes of Apple Cider Vinegar are streaming on Netflix.

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