Why New 'Wuthering Heights' Film Has Sparked Controversy Among Fans

Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie’s Wuthering Heights is one of the most highly anticipated films of 2026 — but the latest adaptation of Emily Brontë’s classic novel has faced a fair share of controversy from the very start.

Brontë’s 1847 novel follows the Earnshaw and Linton families during late 18th century England. The story focuses on Earnshaw’s foster son Heathcliff, who falls in love with foster sister Catherine. While the pair begin an intense love affair, Heathcliff sets out on a path of revenge and destruction after Catherine ultimately chooses to marry someone else.

The novel is considered a classic of Gothic literature and has seen various onscreen adaptations over the years. When it was announced in September 2024 that Saltburn director Emerald Fennell would be the next to try her hand at the story with Elordi and Robbie in the lead roles, some fans of the novel were quick to point out apparent discrepancies in the casting and aesthetic choices.

“I wish i did not live to see the day wuthering heights, a beautiful gothic novel about the cycle of generational trauma with themes of race, class, religion, mental illness, abuse, etc., was adapted into a white washed dark romance Booktok bodice ripper with a hyperpop soundtrack,” one person wrote via the Instagram comments section after Warner Bros. revealed the first teaser trailer in September 2025.

Many fans and scholars pointed to issues over Elordi being a white man while Heathcliff is heavily insinuated to be a person of color, as well as Elordi and Robbie being adults while Heathcliff and Catherine are meant to be teenagers. The teaser trailer’s more erotic tone, meanwhile, worried some fans that the underlying messages of sexual violence, racism and social class will be forgotten.

Others, however, expressed their excitement over a fresh take on the classic.

“Did we read the same book? It was dark, tortured and their love story toxic,” one person explained via Instagram in September 2025. “Each to their own, but for myself I never set the expectation a film adaptation will ever be exactly like the book. There are movies that are close to the story but good movies in themselves, some that completely miss the mark. Less expectation, less disappointment especially until I see the movie.”

Keep scrolling for everything to know about Wuthering Heights’ controversy:

Heathcliff’s Casting 

In Brontë’s novel, Heathcliff is described as a “dark-skinned gypsy” with “black eyes,” leading many scholars to believe that he is meant to be a person of color. While Fennell’s take on the film is far from the first adaptation to cast a white man as Heathcliff — Tom Hardy portrayed the character in the 2009 miniseries while Ralph Fiennes made his film debut as Heathcliff in the 1992 movie — the most recent take, 2011’s Andrea Arnold-directed film, saw James Howson in the lead role.

Many fans of the novel believe Heathcliff’s ambiguous background is a crucial aspect of his story line as it shapes his character through Brontë’s themes of racial prejudice. After the casting of Elordi was announced in September 2024, and the trailer revealed one year later, some fans voiced their discomfort with the choice.

“Not to be that one friend who is too woke but bleaching the class and racial otherness out of wuthering heights to sell a horny whitewashed romance genuinely pisses me off,” one person wrote in the Instagram comments section of the first teaser trailer in September 2025.

Another added via X, “Fine, I’ll bite. Casting a white man for Heathcliff broke this adaptation at the very foundation because I look at Jacob Elordi and all I see is a caricature and fundamental misunderstanding of the source material. No amount of stunning cinematography can save that.”

Meanwhile, various Brontë scholars have also voiced criticisms. Claire O’Callaghan told The Telegraph in April 2025 that Fennell casting a white man as Heathcliff  “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.”

Catherine and Heathcliff’s Ages

Another point of contention for certain scholars and fans is the choice to cast Robbie and Elordi, who were 34 and 27, respectively, at the time of filming. The novel insinuates that the characters are much younger, with readers meeting Catherine at around age 6 with her growing up to be around 19 by the time of her death.

While Hollywood often ages up actors for roles, Catherine’s youth and coming of age is believed by some to be an imperative aspect to the story in how it highlights the choices that shape her tragic fate. (In the 2011 adaptation, Kaya Scodelario was around 18 while playing Catherine, while Howson was around 22 as Heathcliff.)

Eroticism

When the first trailer dropped in September 2025, some fans of the novel noticed the erotic tone, leading to concerns that Fennell’s take might dilute other messages of the story like violence, social class, race and ethnicity.

In an August 2025 report from World of Reel, one alleged attender of an early screening claimed the Gothic drama was “aggressively provocative and tonally abrasive.”

“Emily Bronte is rising from her grave as we speak because why did they turn wuthering heights into fifty shades of heathcliff and cathy,” one September 2025 post via X, which garnered 53K likes at the time of posting, read.

The Soundtrack

The September 2025 teaser featured Charli XCX’s “Everything Is Romantic,” an electronic upbeat pop song that left some fans confused about the tone and aesthetic of the film. It was also announced that the singer had written original music for the film, which is meant to take place in the 1800s, causing some to express concerns that the movie will tonally read as romantic instead of dark and tragic.

“Why is a charli xcx song playing in a period drama that‘s a wuthering heights adaptation?” one person asked via X after the trailer dropped, while another claimed the idea felt “out of touch.”

Are Some Fans Excited?

Absolutely. Many fans have pointed out that an adaptation has no actual obligation to reflect the source material accurately.

“Art of yearning is lust yall this is a NEW adaptation if you’re not interested in a new more artistic perspective then watch one of the old boring adaptations cuz of those there are manyyy,” one person wrote via the Instagram comments section of the trailer in September 2025.

Another argued that Brontë’’s novel was one of “dark romance,” which is exactly what Fennell is portraying. “Heathcliff vowed his worms will feed off of Catherine and his deceased body. Emily Bronte criticized Jane Austen’s works for not showing the darkness of humanity. This is dark romance,” they claimed. “And I think Emily Bronte shocked people with her book then and in some way… we years later experience this closely to how they may have felt. I’m intrigued.”

Others praised the overall aesthetic and vibe of the trailer, which drew parallels to Fennell’s 2023 film Saltburn, with one person writing via Instagram, “They saltburned Emily Brontë, consider me sat.” A second person said: “Holy crap this trailer is phenomenal.”

Some were surprised by what they saw but interested to see what else the film has in store. “Was NOT what I was expecting, but considered me seated 🙂‍↕️😮‍💨♥️,” a fan wrote in the comments section under the trailer.

How Have Cast and Crew Reacted to the Criticism?

Neither Elordi, Robbie nor Fennell has reacted publicly to the controversy over the film, but casting director Kharmel Cochrane defended her choices while attending Sands film festival in early 2025, arguing that while there are bound to be some “English Lit fans who are not going to be happy,” there is “no need to be accurate” to the source material.

“It’s just a book. That is not based on real life. It’s all art,” Cochrane said, noting that the set design is “even more shocking” and there “may or may not be a dog collar in it.”