Wuthering Heights’ Dark Opening Explained By Emerald Fennell

Despite being a commercial success, Emerald Fennell’s adaptation of Wuthering Heights was dubbed controversial and divided audiences.

The film’s opening shocked viewers. Wuthering Heights began with a man being hanged, and those present are paying more attention to an involuntary physical response. While the image was disturbing, it was included for a reason, and it wasn’t intended to be used as shock value. Fennel explained to USA Today:

With the first moments of a film, you need to set the tone and say what it is. This is a deeply felt romance. But I also wanted people to understand that it would be surprising and darkly funny and perhaps stranger than they would expect. It was important to acknowledge early on that arousal and danger are kind of the same thing – that is what the Gothic is, and it was important that the first thing we see is Cathy, this young girl, seemingly frightened but then actually delighted. It tells us so much about who she is, but so much about Brontë, too. We have this idea that the world of period dramas was fragrant and beautiful and pastel and lovely. It wasn’t at all. It was a dangerous place to live in, so it was crucial for me to show that right at the beginning.

Jacob Elordie and Margot Robbie embrace in Wuthering Heights

Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi portrayed Cathy and Heathcliff in the new adaptation. However, fans of Brontë’s classic Gothic novel weren’t happy with the film’s casting decisions. They also took issue with how the movie strayed from the book. Fennell defended the changes that were made and explained why she wanted to focus on the romance at the center of the story, instead of the themes of familial trauma, grief, and revenge.

All I could do was make a movie that made me feel the way the book made me feel, and therefore it just felt right to say it’s Wuthering Heights, and it isn’t.

Despite the critiques, or maybe because of them, Wuthering Heights has been a hit. Its opening weekend dominated the box office, and it is currently tied with the 1939 film for the highest score (85%) of an adaptation of the novel on Rotten Tomatoes.

Heathcliff and Catherine walking in a hall in Wuthering Heights

Fennell is no stranger to shocking audiences. The infamous “bathtub scene” from 2023’s Saltburn stunned audiences and critics alike. The titillating moment was an omen of things to come for Wuthering Heights. Saltburn, also starring Elordi, tells a story of psychosexual obsession, lies, and possession.

While viewers were curious about Fennell’s adaptation of Brontë’s novel, many were concerned about the artistic license taken after the first trailer dropped. Along with the opening of the film being changed, the ending was as well.

The open ending left many wondering if a sequel was in the works, perhaps covering more of the material left out of the 2026 film. Wuthering Heights, written in 1847 by Emily Brontë under her pen name, Ellis Bell, covers the struggles of class, race, and sex in the moors of 1840’s Yorkshire.

Fennell’s adaptation has leaned into her dark sensibilities and twisted sense of humor, evoking comparison to Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu. Both tackle modern adaptations of Gothic material with modern twists and disturbing performances.

Wuthering Heights is currently playing in theaters worldwide.