‘Wuthering Heights’ does not live up to the hype

BY LINDSEY HUGHES

Art Director

The latest adaptation of famous author Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights” is quickly becoming one of the most hated movies of 2026, and the year has barely begun. 

Fans and critics alike have all sorts of things to say about the movie since its release on Feb. 13. From comments on the underwhelming romance portion, to the clumsy acting, to some going as far as to call it “more racist than its 19th-century source material,” as Noah Berlatsky of READER said during a review, it is safe to say that the film is not a fan favorite.

“Wuthering Heights” is a mix between a gothic drama, ghost tale and love story. The story centers around the two main characters, young orphan Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, whose father brought Heathcliff home one day. 

Their love story is supposed to be obsessive, passionate and toxic. Many imperative emotional moments have been glazed over due to the amount of corner-cutting that was needed to fit the entire story into the already almost two-and-a-half-hour movie. 

Many critics and movie reviewers have already mentioned this; however, I’ll echo the fact that the marketing for this movie made it appear to be significantly more passionate and thrilling as a love story than it was. 

Another critique is how incredibly different this adaptation is from the book in several major ways. Book Heathcliff was described as “dark-skinned gypsy,” or “dark,” and while it is unclear whether this was a racial description or simply a way to play into the gothic, mysterious nature of the character, many people are unhappy with the casting of Jacob Elordi rather than a darker-skinned actor. 

The book focuses very heavily on social class and the difference between the life of Heathcliff and that of Catherine, which is a large reason why so many watchers are disappointed in Elordi being cast. 

Director Emerald Fennell has said that she wanted the movie to embody the feeling she had at 14 when she first read the book, “It was just the most thrilling experience,” Fennell said. However, this did not seem to translate well to fans of the book or older movies. 

Currently, “Wuthering Heights” is sitting at a 6.3-star rating on IMDb, with negative reviews overwhelming the positive ones. Fan reviews say things like, “Atmosphere over emotion, I really wanted to love this adaptation, but it just felt hollow.”

Even big-time movie critique sites and news stations are releasing reviews with scathing titles. The Conversation called it “a bad film and a worse adaptation.” Ian Thomas Malone’s headline was “‘Wuthering Heights’ Review: Bronte’s Depth Is Thrown Out The Window In This Substance-Free Adaptation.”

On the more positive side of things, the score of the movie was extremely well done and wonderful to listen to. 

All songs were original from Charli XCX and fit the movie perfectly. Set design and costume design were impressive to say the least, it was one of the most visually stunning movies I have seen in theatres in quite a while.

 There was such noticeable and beautiful attention to detail, with both sets and costumes. 

There was also humor thrown in here and there that did make it a more enjoyable movie to watch. It was certainly well timed between scenes of yearning and longing, and I have nothing bad to say about that.

Overall, it was a bit of a disappointing watch. 

There were aspects that could have been done much better, and after Fennell’s last hits, such as “Saltburn” and “Promising Young Woman,” I think everyone was hoping to be wowed.