Emerald Fennell discusses her new Wuthering Heights adaptation, focusing on primal emotions and sexuality

Emerald Fennell, the Oscar-winning director of *Promising Young Woman*, spoke about her highly anticipated film adaptation of Emily Brontë’s *Wuthering Heights*. The director emphasized her desire to capture the primal and sexual emotions she felt when she first read the novel as a teenager. Starring Margot Robbie as Catherine Earnshaw and Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff, the film features a highly stylized and gothic approach, drawing on themes of intense passion and emotional turmoil. Fennell shared her personal connection to the book, explaining how it ‘cracked her open’ when she first encountered it at age 14. She admitted that her film adaptation includes some risqué elements she thought were present in the original novel, reflecting her teenage imagination. Despite some liberties taken, Fennell aimed to preserve much of Brontë’s dialogue, praising it as some of the best ever written. The director discussed the challenges of adapting such a personal and iconic work, likening the process to an act of masochism due to its emotional weight. The film is set for release on February 14, 2025, coinciding with Valentine’s Day.