Wuthering Heights: 5 major differences between Emily Brontë's novel and the Emerald Fennell adaptation

Wuthering Heights is a film in the period romantic drama genre. It is written and directed by Emerald Fennell and is adapted from Emily Brontë's 1847 namesake novel. The film premiered at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre and was released theatrically by Warner Bros. Pictures on February 13, 2026.

Here's the official synopsis as per Letterboxd:

"Tragedy strikes when Heathcliff falls in love with Catherine Earnshaw, a woman from a wealthy family in 18th-century England."

The makers have made several changes in the film that deviate from the source material. This is mostly due to the change in medium. So let's explore the details.

5 major differences between Wuthering Heights film and book

1) The Ending: In the film, Cathy's health starts to deteriorate due to the miscarriage. Nelly informs Heathcliff about her health, and he arrives to see her. But Cathy is already dead. The book goes into the details of Cathy and Edgar's daughter as well as Heathcliff's son. Cathy's demise takes place towards the end of part one in the book.

2) Heathcliff's backstory: The film showcases Heathcliff arriving in town with someone. In the book, Mr. Earnshaw takes Heathcliff back to Liverpool. This was the time when Heathcliff was a young boy. There are hints in the book that Heathcliff was Earnshaw's illicit child.

3) Heathcliff's ethnicity: In Wuthering Heights, the character of Heathcliff is played by a caucasian actor, Jacob Elordi. But the scholars have described that the book features him as a "dark-skinned gypsy" and "a little Lascar or a Spanish castaway." A section of audiences criticized the casting choice of the film.

4) Opening: The film starts with several shots of the town to establish its geography. We see all the townsfolk feeling joyous as they witness the hanging of a man. His identity is not revealed. The book has a narrator named Mr. Lockwood who pays a visit to Thrushcross Grange. He then goes on to see his landlord, Heathcliff. Both these opening scenes are starkly different from each other and evoke different feelings.

5) Scene at the rock: The book doesn't mention that Cathy indulges in exploring her s*xuality. But the film deviates here in a big way. A scene in the film features Cathy going through a sensual awakening. She observes Zillah and Joseph having intercourse inside the stable. This triggers something in Cathy, who then starts seeing things differently. She also starts pleasuring herself behind a large rock.

In a Fandango interview, the film's director Emerald Fennell spoke about adapting the book. She said:

“The thing for me is that you can’t adapt a book as dense and complicated and difficult as this book. I can’t say I’m making Wuthering Heights. It’s not possible. What I can say is I’m making a version of it. There’s a version that I remembered reading that isn’t quite real. And there’s a version where I wanted stuff to happen that never happened."

Wuthering Heights was released on February 13, 2026.