Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi have been cast in Wuthering Heights, an adaptation of the Emily Brontë novel of the same title.
Set in the Yorkshire moors, Wuthering Heights focuses on the relationship between the Earnshaws and the Lintons, two landed gentry families. Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, who have been adopted by the Linton family, enter into a turbulent and ill-fated relationship that impacts the lives of both families.
The novel, written in 1847, was chosen by Penguin Books as one of its 100 must-read classics.
Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi are set to star in director Emerald Fennell‘s feature adaptation of ‘Wuthering Heights,’ based on Emily Brontë’s classic novel of the same name https://t.co/o3efgBHszq pic.twitter.com/0FL7PZBvLW
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) September 23, 2024
The film is being helmed by Saltburn (2023) director Emerald Fennell.
Robbie will star as Catherine and will also produce. Elordi will star as Heathcliff.
However, Fennell’s casting choices have garnered some controversy. In the novel, Charlotte is described as being in her teenage years. Robbie is 34 years old.
Furthermore, Heathcliff is described in the novel as “dark-skinned.” The academic author Maja-Lisa Von Sneidern writes “Heathcliff’s racial otherness cannot be a matter of dispute.” Speaking about the casting decision, The Independent‘s chief film critic Clarissa Loughrey posted on X (formerly Twitter) to ask “Did anyone actually read the book before deciding this?”
Saltburn, starring Barry Keoghan, received five BAFTA nominations and two Golden Globe nominations. Her debut film, Promising Young Woman (2020), received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture and Best Director, while Fennel won the award for Best Original Screenplay.
Margot Robbie’s production company LuckyChap Entertainment will be producing the film. This is LuckyChap Entertainment’s third collaboration with Fennel. The company worked on her previous features Promising Young Woman and Saltburn. Furthermore, Fennell co-starred alongside Robbie in Barbie (2023).
Wuthering Heights is Elordi’s second feature collaboration with Fennell, having also starred as Felix Cattan in Saltburn.
Wuthering Heights is currently in pre-production and is set to begin filming in 2025.
