Rebel Wilson claims Sacha Baron Cohen suggested kissing on boat to promote Grimsby

Rebel Wilson has claimed Sacha Baron Cohen suggested their kissing on a boat to drum up publicity for their film Grimsby.

The Pitch Perfect actress alleged in her new memoir, Rebel Rising, that the Borat star was a "massive a**hole" on the South African set of the 2016 film, also known as The Brothers Grimsby, and allegedly asked her to perform nude scenes and a sexual act.

Discussing her book on Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard on Monday, the Australian actress claimed the British actor "kind of got off on making people in general feel uncomfortable" and made her "feel very uncomfortable by all sorts of comments".

Sharing an alleged example, she said, "He said I should rent a boat in Cape Town and we should kiss publicly, and then the paparazzi would take photos and then that could be a scandal that would help promote the film."

The 44-year-old also revealed she had crossed paths with Baron Cohen, who is married to actress Isla Fisher, about a year earlier at a dinner party when she tested out some jokes before hosting the 2013 MTV Movie Awards.

"I can just see him not laughing," she recalled. "And there were other comedians there that were being more friendly, but Sacha was the one that I really idolised, and so I was, like, just seeing if he would laugh. (At the end), he goes, 'You're in real serious trouble. You have nothing. It sent me on a four-day panic spiral where I got other comedians to write some jokes for me."

Despite that incident, Wilson thought she had hit "the jackpot" when Baron Cohen called her up to be in his movie. However, it ended up being "the worst professional experience" she had ever had.

A representative for the actor recently denied the allegations, calling them "demonstrably false claims (that) are directly contradicted by extensive detailed evidence".

In the interview, Wilson insisted she wasn't "seeking some revenge" or trying to get Baron Cohen "cancelled", explaining that it helped her to tell the story as part of the self-worth narrative of her book.

Rebel Rising will be released on Tuesday.