Yes, Wuthering Heights Is a ‘Hurlevent’

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Lots of photos have surfaced from the Paris premiere of Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights on February 2nd, showing Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, and the rest of the cast looking glamorous. The backdrop behind them said “Hurlevent,” which initially struck me as a mistake – maybe a typo or a Photoshopped alteration. I couldn’t figure out what “Hurlevent” was supposed to be.

Someone wondered if ‘Hurlevent’ was similar to the movie 28 Years Later, perhaps a French term for a really emotional film. They also questioned why the cast and crew of Wuthering Heights would pose with the word ‘Hurlevent’ instead of the movie’s title. These questions turned out to be surprisingly simple: ‘Hurlevent’ is the French title of Wuthering Heights. This has been the case for a long time, going back to the 19th century, and was popularized by the 1985 French film adaptation also titled Hurlevent. It turns out we’ve been living with this French title all along without realizing it – a funny twist in a globalized world!

The title “Hurlevent” is a direct translation of Wuthering Heights, meaning “howling wind.” The name comes from the setting of the novel—a bleak house in Yorkshire constantly battered by strong winds. This reminds me of the time the BAFTAs pointed out that the British title for Zootopia 2 is actually Zootropolis 2 (apparently, “Zootopia” is trademarked by a Danish zoo!). It just goes to show that you can always learn something new, even if it’s just the title of a book in another language—or avoid using it to describe a bad experience!

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2026-02-03 23:54