Is Milla Blake in Netflix's Apple Cider Vinegar based on a real person?

Netflix fans are hooked on a brand new true crime series and already want to binge-watch every episode.

Australian true crime drama Apple Cider Vinegar only hit the streaming platform on Thursday, but viewers were immediately gripped.

The miniseries tells the story of notorious Australian cancer fraudster Belle Gibson, with US actress Kaitlyn Dever taking on the challenging role of living up to Gibson's notorious 60 Minutes interview. 

The 'true-ish story based on a lie' re-tells the rise and fall of the wellness influencer, who rose to fame by claiming that she healed herself from terminal brain cancer by eating healthy. 

In the series, Gibson borrows her idea from Milla Blake, real-life blogger with cancer who is treating her illness with alternative medicine. 

While Gibson is a real person who scammed thousands of unwell Australians in the 2010s, the inspiration for Aussie actress Alycia Debnam Carey's character isn't as obvious. 

The Lost Flowers of Alice Heart star plays Gibson's friend-turned-influencer rival who vows to take her down after Gibson steals her life story.

Australian writer Samantha Strauss, who lived in Melbourne during the early 2010s when Belle Gibson’s real-life fraud took place, said Milla is 'a portrait of influencers at the time.' 

But she did tell Today that Milla isn't entirely fiction. Strauss based Milla on Jessica Ainscough, a teen magazine editor who was diagnosed with a rare cancer at age 22. 

Like Milla, Ainscough had a rare soft-tissue cancer known as Epithelioid Sarcoma in 2008.

According to The Guardian, doctors told her that she would need to amputate her arm at the shoulder for her best chance at survival.  

She had chemotherapy, and when it didn't work, explored alternative medicines including Gerson Therapy. 

'I didn’t chop off my arm. I didn’t go into aggressive, full-body chemotherapy. I didn’t accept that my doctor’s ‘solution’ was the only course of action', she wrote on her Wellness Warrior blog which was published by Daily Mail UK.  

'I decided that I would do everything in my power to thrive in life, in spite of the looming expiration date I’d been given. I learned how to treat myself with absolute kindness & self-respect. I radicalised my diet. I systematically detoxified my body — and mind.'

Gerson therapy is based on the belief that disease can be cured 'by removing toxins from the body, boosting the immune system, and replacing excess salt in the body’s cells with potassium,' according to the National Cancer Institute. 

Gerson therapy is not scientifically proven, but Ainscough claimed it worked for her. 

Ainscough branded herself 'The Wellness Warrior' and documented her efforts on a blog, like Milla does in the show. 

Australian actress Susie Porter showcased her ageless beauty on Monday night as she graced the red carpet in Sydney for the world premiere of the Netflix series. 

The 53-year-old Wentworth star stunned in an elegant black one-shoulder gown that accentuated her toned frame at the premiere. 

Her character, Milla's mother, also seems to be based in fact. 

Jessica's mum, Sharyn, also adopted Gerson therapy after being diagnosed with breast cancer. 

Sharyn passed away in 2013, leaving her daughter 'bedridden' with grief as she told the Guardian. Two years later, Ainscough passed away. 

She was 29-years-old, and it had been seven years since her initial diagnosis. 

Jessica's fiancé Tallon Pamenter honored her with a heartfelt post on Instagram. 

'Jess I want to thank you for being my best friend, my biggest cheer leader, my greatest inspiration, my rock and the constant love of my life,' he wrote.

Apple Cider Vinegar tells Bella and Milla's stories in tandem, showing them as close friends before Milla becomes determined to expose Bella as a fraud. 

In real life, the women had very little to do with one another. 

But it is true that Gibson attended Ainscough's funeral and cried uncontrollably. 

The Sydney Morning reported that at one point, the fraudster even called Ainscough's finace into a private bedroom and cried on his shoulder. 

'Some guests seemed put off by it,' one person told the newspaper. 'She was noticeably having outbursts.'

'It was like she was making a point of being seen and heard,' added another. 'Like she was trying to prove that she was more devastated than everybody else who was there.'

In 2017, Gibson was convicted of misleading and deceptive conduct, and the Federal Court of Australia ordered her to pay a fine of about $400,000. Her cookbook was pulled from the shelves.