‘Wuthering Heights’ Film Adaptation Controversy, Explained

Topline

An upcoming movie adaptation of the classic novel “Wuthering Heights” is stirring controversy online months before its release, as some fans of the book have lamented Jacob Elordi’s casting as a character who some scholars say is not white, as well as the erotic marketing some have criticized as overly sexual.

Jacob Elordi’s casting as Heathcliff has stirred controversy, as some scholars and fans of the novel say the character is portrayed as nonwhite in the book. (Photo by Marilla Sicilia/Archivio Marilla Sicilia/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)

Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images

Key Facts

The trailer for “Wuthering Heights,” helmed by “Saltburn” director Emerald Fennell and starring Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie, premiered Wednesday, quickly sparking online discourse and drawing criticism from fans of the book who fear the adaptation will be unfaithful.

The movie is an adaptation of Emily Brontë’s 1847 novel, considered a classic of Gothic literature, which follows the Earnshaw and Linton families in late 18th century England, particularly the Earnshaw’s foster son Heathcliff, who falls in love with Catherine Earnshaw but later descends into cruelty and bitterness.

Fans of the novel have highlighted apparent inconsistencies between the novel and Fennell’s adaptation—Robbie, who plays Catherine Earnshaw, is twice the age as the book’s teenage protagonist.

Some have also lamented Elordi’s casting as Heathcliff and accused Fennell of “whitewashing” Brontë’s novel, as the book suggests the character may not be white and at one point describes him as “dark-skinned,” though Heathcliff’s exact ethnic origin is unclear and debated by scholars.

The movie’s marketing has also drawn some criticism for appearing overly erotic, which some fans fear may dilute other themes in the book like violence and cruelty, social class, race and ethnicity.

“Wuthering Heights” opens in theaters in February.

Chief Critics

The “Wuthering Heights” trailer immediately sparked plenty of critical comments on social media. In one post on X that garnered 53,000 likes, a user accused Fennell of “bleaching the class and racial otherness out of wuthering heights to sell a horny whitewashed romance.” Another user, who garnered 33,000 likes, said “emily bronte is rising from her grave as we speak because why did they turn wuthering heights into fifty shades of heathcliff and cathy.” Another user said the film studio is marketing the movie “like it’s some dark romance booktok book adaptation,” referring to BookTok, a community of users on TikTok who read and create content about novels, which are often romance. Some users also recirculated a clip of Tina Fey on the iHeartRadio “Las Culturistas” podcast to criticize the film’s erotic tone, in which Fey joked Fennell’s movies “take a sexually violent turn, and you have to pretend to be surprised by that turn.”

Is Heathcliff Portrayed As White In The Novel?

Heathcliff’s portrayal by a white actor is one of the primary controversies surrounding Fennell’s film, and although his exact ethnic origin is left ambiguous in the novel, some scholars believe he was not meant to be portrayed as white. In Brontë’s novel, Heathcliff is described as a “dark-skinned gipsy” with “black eyes,” “as dark as if it came from the devil,” and in one scene, a character remarks: “Who knows but your father was Emperor of China, and your mother an Indian queen.” Michael Stewart, director of the U.K.-based Brontë Writing Center, told The Telegraph he feels “quite strongly that Emily’s intention was that he was either black or mixed-race and there are lots of clues in the text to suggest that.” Claire O’Callaghan, a Brontë scholar who is the editor-in-chief of the academic journal Brontë Studies, told The Telegraph she feels Fennell casting a white man “overlooks the ambiguity that’s there, and therefore kind of overlooks the readings that Emily Brontë is pointing to that are as rich as anything else.” O’Callaghan noted Heathcliff is treated as an outsider and subject to abuse early in the book, which can be read as racist abuse: “Part of the horror of that first part of the book is that Emily Brontë shows the kind of abuse of the outsider.” Some scholars have theorized Heathcliff may have been mixed race, Black, Irish or Roma.

How Have Audiences Reacted At Test Screenings?

“Wuthering Heights” reportedly debuted at a test screening for audiences in Dallas last month, which garnered mixed reviews. One attendee reportedly called the movie “aggressively provocative and tonally abrasive,” describing scenes of “clinical masturbation,” sex scenes featuring bondage and less emotional complexity than the source novel. An attendee reportedly called it a “deliberately unromantic take on Brontë’s novel.”

How Have The Cast And Crew Responded To Criticism?

Kharmel Cochrane, casting director for “Wuthering Heights,” said in April there are “definitely going to be some English Lit fans that are not going to be happy” with Fennell’s adaptation, adding, “you really don’t need to be accurate. It’s just a book. That is not based on real life. It’s all art.” Cochrane said the set design is “even more shocking” and there “may or may not be a dog collar in it.”

What Else Do We Know About The Movie?

“Wuthering Heights” also stars Hong Chau as Nelly Dean, a caregiver and narrator of the novel, as well as Shazad Latif as Edgar Linton, Catherine Earnshaw’s love interest who feuds with Heathcliff. Singer Charli XCX wrote several new songs for the movie, and her song “Everything is Romantic” plays during the film’s trailer. The movie was produced and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The movie is Fennell’s follow-up to “Saltburn,” the 2023 film that became an online hit and also spurred some controversy over provocative scenes.