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Is the new Wuthering Heights adaptation already dead in the water with its key demo?? Saltburn director Emerald Fennell is getting a lot of backlash already, and no one has seen even a second of film!
If you haven’t heard, Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi are playing Catherine and Heathcliff in the upcoming movie version of the classic 1847 Emily Brontë novel. The thing is, those A-listers don’t exactly fit the traditional description of the characters… ESPECIALLY not Jacob.
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First, Catherine is an 18-year-old in the book. and while Margot looks amazing, she’s 34. Is she really going to be playing a teenager??
But fans may be able to swallow that. Margot is a huge movie star. Something they CAN’T get over though is the whitewashing of Heathcliff, who’s described in the book as “dark-skinned”. We don’t know about you, but Mr. Elordi isn’t the first person who pops into our heads when we hear that description. On social media, fans of the OG have been criticizing the casting decision for some time:
“Jacob elordi is a freak for agreeing to play heathcliff in the first place bc even a child reading wuthering heights knows heathcliff is not supposed to look like that”
“Who tf was in charge of the casting for wuthering heights cus why is Jacob elordi heathcliff like he can act but whyyy it would’ve been perfect to cast some unknown person or someone who matched the description of the character bro cmon he’s supposed to be a person of color”
“That’s pretty wild”
“Just a reminder that heathcliff is Romani, not white so they already f**ked up with Jacob Elordis casting”
“Why is he white”
“this is gonna be the worst movie ever unfortunately”
And now the casting director is addressing all the backlash!
Over the weekend, Kharmel Cochrane attended the Sands Film Festival in Scotland and defended Jacob’s casting during a Q&A. She explained:
“If something is clearly written as white, for example, a script reads ‘she tied her blonde hair back,’ but there’s no specific reason for it, I will just put people on tape. And then it’s almost like I dare someone to question why I’ve done it, and they don’t. So then it just becomes normal. Years ago, I would get people saying, ‘did you read the brief?’ And I’d say ‘yeah, and this is my interpretation of it, just like when you can read a book.’”
We appreciate the idea of colorblind casting… but the other way! After all, there are a LOT of old books and plays and movies with all-white casts — just because people were even more racist back then. Why adhere to that, right? There are so many great actors of color, and limiting yourself to just white actors is such an antiquated notion!
But taking a character who used to get whitewashed in other adaptations for decades? Because of racism? And whitewashing him again in 2025?! Come on, now! That’s not what people mean when they say colorblind casting! Not to mention Heathcliff’s racial difference actually does speak to his status in society in the story.
We have to go with the fans on this one, this doesn’t feel revolutionary at all — it feels backward. But just because we agree does NOT mean we agree with all the comments! Kharmel says she got an indirect threat of violence over the movie! She recalled:
“There was one Instagram comment that said the casting director should be shot. But just wait till you see it, and then you can decide whether you want to shoot me or not.”
Ultimately she thinks it’s much ado about nothing — because who really cares, right?
“But you really don’t need to be accurate. It’s just a book. That is not based on real life. It’s all art.”
That… is a stance…
Wuthering Heights will hit theaters on February 13, 2026 — just in time for Valentine’s Day. Will YOU be there?
[Images via MEGA/WENN]
The post Jacob Elordi 'Dark-Skinned'?? <i>Wuthering Heights</i> Casting Director Defends Against Whitewashing Criticism: 'It’s Just A Book' appeared first on Perez Hilton.
