‘The Brontë Sisters Are Rolling in Their Graves’

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It seems every generation reimagines Wuthering Heights to fit its own times, and this weekend it’s Emerald Fennell’s turn. Her adaptation, starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, takes some bold liberties – like a playful, and somewhat strange, kink involving hiding raw eggs. The film has sparked a lot of debate for months, covering everything from whether the actors are right for their roles to how it handles race, and whether Fennell’s vision stays true to Emily Brontë’s original story. Some of the more talked-about additions include bizarre wallpaper and explicit scenes. I went to several New York City theaters on opening day to see what people were saying, what was drawing them in – the stars, the director, the source material, or the film’s provocative elements – and just how the audience was reacting to it all.

I started my afternoon at a 3 p.m. showing at the Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn. In the lobby, there was a large cardboard bench shaped like something from “Wuthering Heights”, but no one was sitting on it. The theater wasn’t very crowded, mostly filled with people watching the movie alone, a few couples, and a small group of women enjoying Champagne. You could feel the excitement in the air, mixed with the lingering smell of snow. I spoke with a friendly man named Jared, 27, who had read the book a year ago before the movie came out, but he was really there because of his mother. He explained, “She loves the book, but she won’t see this movie because she doesn’t think it’s a faithful adaptation. She thinks it’s terrible!” He added with a pause, “That’s just her opinion.” He rated the book itself a “seven or higher” out of ten, but declared Margot Robbie “the greatest actress ever.”

Mateo, a young man in his twenties who often attends events alone because his friends are at work, previously studied the Brontë sisters in college and is familiar with other film adaptations of Wuthering Heights. He particularly enjoys Andrea Arnold’s atmospheric version. He noted that Emerald Fennell’s adaptation “looks quite different from the book,” but he’s eager to see her interpretation. He doesn’t mind if the film deviates from the source material, believing artists should have creative freedom. However, he questions the casting of Jacob Elordi, suggesting it should have been discussed more, and points out that Margot Robbie is older than the character of Cathy as written in the novel. While he wasn’t sure if he fully enjoyed Fennell’s Saltburn, he admits it was thought-provoking. Several attendees mentioned the chemistry between Elordi and Robbie, showcased in the promotional materials, as a major reason for their interest. Aldo, who was there with his boyfriend, commented, “The trailer is steamier than the book,” adding, “It’s good to see the story told from an adult perspective,” considering Emily Brontë was only 29 when she wrote Wuthering.

Shaked, beaming with happiness, explained she was enjoying a rare outing. ‘My husband’s away and my child is at daycare, so I really needed to get out of the house and be around other adults,’ she said. She had a large soda and a few hours to herself before needing to pick up her child. She’d struggled with Wuthering Heights in high school, but was a fan of the movie’s writer and excited to see the film, even after reading some critical reviews. ‘Those reviewers just didn’t get it,’ she explained. When I asked her what she did get out of it, she simply said, ‘I just want to have fun.’

I joined a group of women who were clearly enjoying themselves – they’d been friends for ten years and had booked tickets a month in advance. They were all reading the same book, finding it generally good but occasionally a bit challenging, though they admitted the real draw was Jacob Elordi. When I asked what they liked about him, one simply said, “Everything – he’s hot!” Another was more conflicted about the casting, saying they thought the actor should have more closely resembled the character’s description in the book, but conceded it was hard to resist Elordi’s appeal. A third disagreed, pointing out that historical depictions suggested some people of Moorish descent had lighter skin tones – though it quickly became confusing whether they were discussing the historical Moors or the bleak, open landscapes in the story.

“I mean, I have some Moors inside of me.”

“You have moors inside you? Right now?”

“My 23andMe says I have a lot of that in me.”

“How many do you have inside you?”

“Is that what ‘23 in Me’ means?”

Outside the theater, I bumped into my friend Louie, who explained he was at the Thursday showing because all the weekend screenings were full. He jokingly said, “I was hoping for some nudity, specifically butt or penis shots! Remember last time, we saw a lot of that with Barry?” I did remember. He continued, “I don’t really love the director’s other films, but they’re visually interesting. Honestly, I’m mostly here for Jacob Elordi. I don’t know anything about the story, Wuthering Heights.” I asked him what he did know. He replied, “Heathcliff, sexual frustration, bleak landscapes, forbidden romance, and social class!” A woman walking by chimed in, saying she wanted to form her own opinion before reading reviews. “My expectations are pretty low; I haven’t enjoyed any of the director’s movies, but I want to give this one a chance. It can’t possibly be as bad as Saltburn.”

From the Alamo, I walked to the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where I bought tickets for a 3:45 p.m. screening, only to have two senior women behind me on line roll their eyes at each other and proceed to purchase two tickets to Marty Supreme. The ticket seller told me that the Wuthering theater, which seats about 250, had more than 200 seats still open. Upstairs, I met Sissy, a 73-year-old woman in large pearl earrings with a beautiful southern accent. She’s a “huge fan” of both Brontë and Fennell. “I like her approach,” she said of the director. “She’s very daring.” Questions of Brontë allegiance didn’t bother her. “Look at Hamilton. Look at Bridgerton. They’ve thrown all the rules away. That’s how I view it. I’m very open-minded.” Alex and Lauren, 38 and 40, had read our critic Alison Willmore’s review. “We’ve been calling it ‘smooth-brained Wuthering Heights’ for quite a while now,” said Lauren. “You’ve done this to us.”

Terry, an older French fan of Saltburn, deliberately avoided reading reviews, wanting to form his own opinion. However, he still seemed worried, saying, “I hope she doesn’t ruin it.” When I asked what ruining Wuthering Heights would look like to him, he admitted he didn’t know. He declined to comment on the casting choices, saying, “I’m not going to get into the controversy. She doesn’t fit my image of Catherine, but it’s just a movie.” I then asked if he knew what French audiences were saying, and he replied, “I don’t think French people will be any kinder to the film than American reviewers.”

It was so strange being in that movie theater. As soon as the film started, I spotted an American woman actually knitting! And it wasn’t just me – nobody seemed to react during the funny parts, or even the intimate scenes. There was this really awkward moment where two women, sitting a few seats apart, started having some kind of silent argument. One finally just got up and moved, clearly upset. But the weirdest thing happened when Heathcliff, you know, put his fingers in Cathy’s mouth – someone actually gasped, and you could see she was looking around to see if anyone else had noticed! It was a really bizarre experience.

As I arrived at Regal Union Square in Manhattan for the 4 p.m. showing, only two people were leaving. One woman was upset and didn’t want to talk, while the other was eager to share her thoughts. Robin, 56, explained she goes to eight to ten movies each week and was initially captivated by the trailer, which always grabbed her attention. However, she felt the movie didn’t live up to the hype. “The trailer was better,” she said. “I had such high expectations, and my friends were tired of me talking about it! It’s strange – both the actors were great, and the costumes were amazing, it was enjoyable, but the story just didn’t quite come together for me.” Despite her disappointment, she planned to see it again, but was immediately heading to a screening of Out of Africa nearby.

The 6:20 p.m. showing was very crowded, mostly with women and only a few men – one of whom was there specifically to see the star, Charli. Many attendees hadn’t known much about the story beforehand. One woman, Cameron, summarized it as a classic forbidden romance. An Australian tourist, Pixie, came because she was with other Australians and they didn’t have other plans. Her friend had been following fan-made videos on TikTok showing the leads, Margot and Jacob, as a couple. Another viewer, Mikey, admitted he was trying to get familiar with the source material, knowing it was based on an older book and possibly a previous film adaptation, so he could join conversations about it.

Maxine and Bella, both huge fans of the Brontë sisters, created a short film adaptation of Wuthering Heights for a school project. Maxine has reread the novel many times since then and felt strongly about staying true to the source material. “I love the book, and I really want the film to capture that,” she explained. “It’s such a classic, it needs to be faithful to the story.” Though she added hesitantly, “I guess it’s okay if it’s not perfect.” Bella, on the other hand, was more fascinated by the public reaction. “I’m interested in what people are saying about it,” she said. “I want to see if the criticisms about it not following the book are accurate. I think people are already upset about something they haven’t even seen yet.”

The audience at the evening showing of ‘Regal’ reacted much more strongly than the afternoon crowd at BAM. The film’s provocative and sensual moments – including scenes with raw eggs – prompted dramatic reactions, from exaggerated gasps to embarrassed laughter and a charged silence. One particularly disturbing scene, where Cathy asks her maid, Nelly, to tighten her corset painfully, caused an older couple to walk out. Later, when Heathcliff dramatically returned from exile, standing defiantly in a foggy courtyard with a new tooth and earring, the remaining audience cheered wildly. However, the two women I was sitting with, Maxine and Bella, seemed shocked by the film’s unfolding events. Maxine repeatedly covered her face with her hands.

As the credits finished after the nearly two-and-a-half-hour film, the theater was filled with a mix of sobs and laughter. People were surprised by their own emotional reactions, exclaiming things like, “What was that?” and “I can’t believe I’m crying!” One viewer felt like she’d watched an entire series of movies, while another simply called it “despicable.” Surprisingly, some enjoyed it more than expected, immediately wondering what happened next in the book. Others were busy researching historical details, like whether couples commonly slept in separate bedrooms during the time period the story was set. One woman was particularly affected by a scene where Heathcliff lifted Cathy by her corset, recounting it with surprising enthusiasm. She playfully described Cathy’s protest – “Put me down!” – as a signal to not be put down.

I looked at Maxine and Bella, who were clearly upset but trying to laugh it off, as they’d agreed to do. “Turning the story into something so sensational misses the point of the book,” Maxine stated. “The Brontë sisters were already incredibly bold for their time—simply having a woman write about love and social class was shocking. This adaptation, in my opinion, undermines that impact. It was fun to watch, but I think the Brontë sisters would be horrified.” She paused, shaking her head as she looked at the screen. “There was no need to add unnecessary sexual content,” she added.

After the movie, I talked to several young women—all under 25—and they were deeply moved. Many were still crying! One woman said the film was incredibly powerful, making her feel like she was experiencing the story rather than just watching it. She hadn’t read the original book, but now she’s eager to. “I want to see how it compares,” she explained, calling the film “amazing.” Another woman was surprised by the movie’s humor. Her friend, who had read the book, said it evoked the same feelings she had while reading, even though the filmmakers simplified the plot. She didn’t mind the changes, though.

I overheard a woman, probably in her twenties and from Mexico, completely captivated by Saltburn and especially Jacob Elordi. She was saying, “I wish someone would love me the way he loves that character!” It really struck a chord, and she was asking how to even get that kind of intense connection. Her friend totally agreed, saying we need more movies with that sweeping, tragic romance. She loved how the whole audience seemed to breathe together at the end, and how everyone was laughing too. She said it perfectly captured a certain feeling of being a young woman – a real ‘girlhood’ moment.

Walking outside, I encountered another group of women still talking about the movie. One of them confessed she’d been jokingly referring to a character as ‘Heathrow,’ but then realized that’s the name of an airport.

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2026-02-13 22:57