Share

Charlize lying - former schoolmate

Johannesburg - Hollywood star Charlize Theron is exaggerating when she says she was bullied at school.

That’s according to an ex-schoolmate, Karlien Breytenbach.

Theron recently said in an American magazine that she was a shrinking violet at school, that boys weren’t interested in her and she was regularly bullied.

But Breytenbach said Theron is talking nonsense about the bullying.

“She was never bullied. She’s the one who bullied the other children.”

Breytenbach says her sister, Anita, and other friends who were with Theron at the Putfontein Primary School in Benoni, can confirm this.

“It makes me the hell in when Charlize talks such crap,” said Breytenbach, who lives on the East Rand.

She was in Grade 3 when Charlize and her younger sister were in Grade 1.

'Farm'

“When she won the Oscar, she said she came from a farm in Africa. That’s rubbish, man. She comes from a plot. Just like me.

“I’m not ashamed to say I come from a plot, but for her it’s a big issue.”

Theron has been busy promoting her latest film, Young Adult, and that’s when she told an interviewer she had been bullied at school.

Breytenbach was very annoyed when she read that.

“She was the one who bullied the other children. And she knew how to manipulate people.”

Prefect

Breytenbach remembers the day when Charlize was not made a prefect.

“You should’ve seen the drama. The next morning she was in the principal’s office with her parents.

“A day later she was a prefect. She had twisted the principal around her little finger.”

Breytenbach also says Charlize’s story that she grew up poor is rubbish.

“While the other children got at the most 20 cents a day for pocket money, Charlize came to school with R20 every day.”

And Charlize knew how to throw a tantrum if she didn’t get her way, the school friend says.

“Didn’t she get to Hollywood because of the big fuss she kicked up in the bank? She’s dishonest with the world.”

Mom

Breytenbach doesn’t spare Theron’s mother either.

“Gerda didn’t greet people. My mother was at the hairdresser when Gerda walked in and my mother greeted her. Gerda just glared at her.”

After Putfontein, Theron finished her school career at the National School of the Arts in Johannesburg.

“We aren’t all fans of hers. I’m not being petty or jealous. But she must stop telling lies.”

» Theron’s spokesperson in Los Angeles did not respond to questions from City Press.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE