Where is Julie Gibbs now? All about the subject of Apple Cider Vinegar on Netflix

Julie Gibbs is the former director of Lantern, a Penguin publishing imprint that focused on cookbooks, who worked with Belle Gibson for her cookbook. Gibson's cancer and financial scam is the inspiration for the Netflix series Apple Cider Vinegar. In the series, Catherine McClements plays Gibbs. According to Gibbs' social media profiles, she is currently located in the Greater Sydney area.

Apple Cider Vinegar explores the rise and fall of Belle Gibson, an Australian wellness influencer who falsely claimed to have cured her terminal brain cancer through natural health and wellness methods.

It chronicles how any misinformation may easily reach people over the internet, even related to severe subjects. While the series is based on true events, some of its characters and events are fictional. The series is inspired by The Woman Who Fooled the World by journalists Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano. Apple Cider Vinegar was released on Netflix on February 6, 2025.

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Julie Gibbs and Belle Gibson's cookbook

According to The Bookseller, Julie Gibbs headed Penguin Australia's cookbook division. As per Books+Publishing, in May 2014, a senior editor emailed to express concerns with the draft for Belle Gibson's cookbook, The Whole Pantry, specifically that Gibson's personal story, work, and health history were lacking.

As per Books+Publishing, in October 2014, Gibson sent an email stating that a "jealous friend" had "turned on her," which the files of Penguin indicate Gibbs knew to mean claims that Gibson fabricated part or all of her illness. Despite these warnings, Penguin went on to publish The Whole Pantry.

According to The Bookseller, public records indicate Penguin hired a PR firm a week after the book's 2014 release and asked them to prepare a plan for a media crisis if Gibson was accused of lying about her story. Penguin ceased fulfilling orders for the cookbook in March 2015 when Gibson publicly admitted that part of her claimed medical history was a lie.

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Penguin's response and fallout

According to The Bookseller, internal documents show that Penguin never checked Gibson's facts, despite having been told of "gaps" three months before the publication of the book. Penguin interviewed Gibson for 90 minutes to help her prepare for the media, and the PR agency advised Penguin to distance itself from Gibson as fast as possible.

According to The Bookseller, one reader accused Penguin of trying to make "a quick buck" and having "just as much blood on your hands as she does." Gibson received an A$130,000 advance and a promised A$15,000 "home economist" from Penguin to help write the book.

As per Books+Publishing, Penguin Australia was later made to pay A$30,000 to the Victorian Consumer Law Fund for engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct by publishing The Whole Pantry.

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Where is Julie Gibbs now?

According to the Gourmet Traveller, at the moment, Gibbs is working for the Powerhouse Museum on building up a national culinary archive of contemporary cuisines in Australia from 1968 forward. This process entails developing culinary treasures and, more importantly, teaching younger chefs how to preserve their materials, including booking books, menu notes, and design briefs.

As per the Sydney Morning Herald, Julie Gibbs started Lantern for Penguin in 2004. The imprint was closed by Penguin Random House in 2015. Gibbs also left the publishing house that year.

While in publishing, she championed and supported the culinary skills of most Australian chefs, more specifically females.

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In a nutshell, Julie Gibbs headed the cookbook division for Penguin Australia that finalized the publication of Belle Gibson's cookbook, The Whole Pantry. Early caution about inconsistencies within Gibson's stories was ignored before Penguin finalized a cookbook with Gibson, hence resulting in large consequences when those claims turned out to be falsified.